Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
BAD CUT of an Awesome movie, December 24, 2008
I don't know why, but this wonderful movie has been cut by about 20 MINUTES. Blasphemy! I don't know where to find a full version containing the original theatrical version with Region 1 coding, but this disc certainly isn't it.
In regards to the movie, it's a brilliant meditation on the reflexive nature of the Spaghetti Western genre as a back-and-forth between Japanese and American cinema replete with beautiful cinematography, clever action sequences, snappy dialog and constant meta-humor within the plot, characters, and sets. It is at all times vibrantly colorful and thoughtful in its execution, and I would rank it with "HERO" in terms of aesthetics and "KILL BILL Vol. 2" in terms of tone and action.
All of which is why I'm giving this particular package 1 out of 5. Not a single bit of it is a waste of time! Boo, butchers!
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0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Modernization of the Spaghetti Western, February 3, 2009
With modern westerns becoming more and more watered down into Michael Bay-esque shoot-out snoozefests, it's hard to find that progressive story line that used to be commonplace in the true westerns of the 50's, 60's and 70's. What modern directors have failed to recognize that a western IS NOT just an action/thriller genre, but should have a significant plot and dialogue written to support the scenes where the real action takes place. And surprisingly, a Japanese Horror Director has fully embraced, and faithfully executed, a true descendant of the genre. Sukiyaki (a japanese noodle dish) has modernized the story line to capture the interest of a more global audience, which, in this modern time, is more interested in samurai swords than 6 shooters anyways. And although there are modern style cues and the cgi effects and somewhat racier content, there is still the classic western plotline; rival gangs competing for the cache of gold in a small western town.
Miike's departure from his typical shock-horror film roots has once again shown the viewer that you should watch his films with little expectations, because whatever you may possibly predict the film to be, he will show you the complete opposite. When I first watched this movie, I expected a samurai slash fest thinly disguised with a Clint Eastwood-like Japanese actor and a weak "gold rush" plotline. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this film is truly a spaghetti western for todays audience. While the broken phonetic english is hard to follow in the beginning, after you acclimate your ears to it, it becomes surprisingly simple to understand, and the Japanese cultural touches, like the eastern style pagoda-ish saloons, the man-powered "covered wagons," the blend between samurai armor and riding chaps, all blend together well to create a believable cowboy/samurai community.
For those of you who have trouble listening to a slightly broken dialect, who want a shoot 'em up western style, with little progressive plotline, and who can't look past the cultural mashup to see that this film is truly a masterpiece of east-meets-west genre blending, then don't see this film. It is for the person who can sit and just enjoy the movie for what it is; a "Sukiyaki" western, showing that other nations can provide an interesting perspective on a decidedly "American" genre, while providing an entertaining story line, plenty of jaw-dropping action, and enough black humor and love-interest to keep any film fan entertained for the entirety.
Highly Recommended, and definitely buy it! One for the collection.
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4 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
steelbook...this sounds kool, October 23, 2008
research is showing that steelbook will have different members of the sukiyaki gang on the covers. I guess this is supposed to be limited edition but it sounds dope. For those that haven't seen this movie...CHECK IT OUT!!!it's definetly something to see. Takeshi is known throughout certain circles, but he is now a western king. Sounds like a good deal, certainly something to look for. Go Bloody Benton!!!
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