Review of 13 Assassins (2010) by Dan L — 05 Jan 2012

It is 1844 Japan. Customs are strictly followed. Honoring the duty to those in power is rarely ignored due to the extreme consequences. But we know those in power often misuse it. Lord Naritsugu is one of those. He is a depraved and evil leader, the Shogun's son. His acts of brutality are obscene. The rumors of his atrocities have become more and more widespread, until one person with clout, Sir Doi, resolves to defy authority and do what must be done.

This movie richly deserves its R rating. If you're squeamish, you'll want to skip it. I appreciate that every bit of the gore and violence, all the young and old made to suffer, the inhumanity, are in the movie to make a point: hate the bad guy. This was accomplished superbly, and with methods that are not commonplace. The image of the woman used by Naritsugu as a plaything, whose arms he cut off and whose tongue he cut out, was by itself nearly enough to do the trick; but the addition of even more heinous acts just drove it home.

Sir Doi enlists Shinzaemon to gather a devoted group of Samurais from Naritsugu's many enemies, all willing to die by that same code of honor Naritsugu relies on, only this time it works on the side of right. In the process we hear each person's story, which deepens our involvement with the characters.

I very much enjoyed the contrast between the passion of the samurai to slaughter in battle, and the kindness and respect among them. It was also intriguing to see the conflict within the "bad" guys at having to carry out terrible acts against their own people to obey and protect Naritsugu. Perhaps the most striking element was the emotion physically portrayed so effectively throughout the film. In a particular fighting scene one of the good samurai is mortally wounded. We see much of the next minute or so through his eyes, sideways because he's lying on the ground. He isn't worrying about the fact that he's about to meet his maker. No! He's terrified the job won't get done, and devastated that he can no longer help. We get all this from facial expressions, body language, great editing and camerawork.

The cinematography is beautiful. Not only is the countryside breathtaking, but the camera angles and composition are exceptional. The editing matches it. The film is 2 hours, but is very tight.

I love it when I walk out of a film saying, "What a great movie!" It's a must see. I give it a 10.