15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Love this film.......but all my friends hate it!, December 14, 2001
Must say that this is one of the most memorable films that i've seen. To describe it in a few words: original and quirky film about some guy who knows he's going to die, so what does he do about it? The film stars Takeshi Kaneshiro (really cool Japanese actor/model dude)as a less-than-motivated foreign student in New York City, and Mira Sorvino as Death herself. It even includes director Wong Suk Chin in an amusing cameo appearance as a Chinatown Hitman.
Well, based on the characters and rough plot, you kinda get the idea that this could turn out to be an absolute waste of time. But if you're patient enough to sit through what can appear to be a pointless film, this can be a rewarding experience. Mostly, this is due to clever snippets of random dialogue throughout the film; less so for content and more so because of delivery. This is where the random characters come in. Among other things, I enjoyed Mira Sorvino trying out 2 different chinese dialects, Italian guy getting sarcastic about the Japanese anatomical inferiority, 12-year old girl describing how pointless manogamy can be, and a hilarious discussion about why its good to take a book into a cafe even if you're not going to be reading it.
Mira Sorvino is brilliant as a charming and strangely compassionate Death. But the most memorable character of the lot is Takeshi's. While the man himself is not a particularly good actor, he more than makes up for this deficiency by just looking so much the part; the part of a character who hardly seems as if he is able to do anything significant for the film. He seems to just laze through the film, even after having been told by death that he faces a premature end. But it is this sort of pace, and Takeshi's encounters with the various random people, that makes this film enjoyable. The tone of the film darkens and gets more profound towards the end. The finale is predictable in terms of the result, but how it happens is less so.
To examine this film any further would be to take it too seriously. The production of the film smacks of deliberate lack of effort, and this is reflected in the many simple and shallow character developments. Yet, it seemed to strike a lot of chords with me, especially since at the time of watching i was a similarly lackadaisical overseas student struggling to get in gear.
Don't expect the film to portray a theme of any kind, but bear in mind the way it takes a superficial look at many disjointed issues. Check this film out only if you're in the mood, or if you're "too tired" to do anything else.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Must-See for Takeshi Kaneshiro..., July 15, 2007
Takeshi Kaneshiro gets 5 stars, which prompts me to give a movie that I'd normally view as 1-2 stars, really, four total. Clearly he's one of the most beautiful men in the world, so just staring at him provides 100% satisfaction for me. Then listening to him speak English...I love it. His portrayl of this character had me smiling from the very start of his opening scene. As far as the movie itself goes, it has a "Basquiat" feel to me. Jeffrey Wright's even in this a bit. Anyway, it's definitely not something I'd have watched without him in it, yet it'll be something that I watch often because he's in it.
P.S. He reminds me of Antonio Banderas, which is a good thing.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
When Will You Die?, June 17, 2007
I bought this film because of Takeshi Kaneshiro. I'm not sorry. This is the only film I've seen with Kaneshiro where he speaks english. He plays the part well making it both easy and (at some times) hard to like him. Mira Sorvino is amazing as Death. She portrays death as a sad creature who has work to do but almost hates that she has to do it.
*SPOILER*
When Death tells Kenji (Kaneshiro) that he has 12 more hours to live, she thinks she's doing him a favor. Unfortunately, in trying to do what he wants, Kenji begins to go slightly crazy. Knowing that he is going to die, Kenji realizes that he has nothing to lose and ends up hurting several people.
*END SPOILER*
Kaneshiro is wonderful in his portrayal of Kenji in this film and Sorvino shines. With off beat characters thrown in everywhere there is surely something that everyone will like.
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