Review of Ichi the Killer (2001) by Dian Maya L — 24 Mar 2010

I'm really worried about myself. Not only wasn't I shocked when I first watched this(ok, maybe a few cringes) , I was eating the second time I watched it! No projectile vomiting included! Now, that I've made my own introduction to the movie it's time to actually review it. I suppose anyone reading this review knows about the notoriety of this film, one of the most explicit film ever, probably Takashi Miike's most violent one. Believe me, that says a lot.

"Koroshiya 1" is a tale of revenge. Probably the ultimate revenge movie. It has the stories of three people wanting to get revenge each for his motives mingling with each other creating a very interesting plot and set of characters for the director to play with. Add to this fact the non linear structure of the film, extremely violent, nausieating almost, torture scenes and the emerging psychological landscapes and you get a pretty good idea of the premise that we are dealing with. Of course all of this writting would have stayed writting without the masterful eye of Takashi Miike to orchestrate all the elements into one solid masterpiece.

You know what they say: "Practice makes perfect" and this idiom fits Miike like a glove. Arguably the most prolific director alive, with eigthyone movies under his belt in less than twenty years, has created some real cinematic jewels. I could say that for me, having not seen many films of his compared to his filmography, "Koryshia 1" is his crown jewel. Directing-wise it is flawless. The way he handles every little scene, let alone the important ones, is wonderful. The way he introduces every character and sets the bluerint for all hell to break loose. The way he handles violence, always depicting it in a different light using many ways to do so. The way he handles the complex psyche of each and every one character in this perverse universe that he deals with. Also the injection of off-beat humour, physical and not, is truly an achievement which turns the movie to a rollercoaster of laughs and cringes that excites and entertains uniquely. All these are the things that make this movie what it is and the brilliance of Takashi Miike appears in every single shot of it.

Still a table can't stand still without all its legs and a movie can't be complete without a talented cast. This movie has one of the best ensemble casts ever to grace the screen. I'll concentrate to the four leading parts. First of all is of course Ichi depicted by the excellent Nao Omori. Omori has probably the hardest part in the movie. The complexity of the character is almost intimidating wiht his feelings going from bullied and scared little boy to merciless cold-blooded killer in a few seconds. The delivery of Omori is also intimidating though raising the bar for psychotic killers with his deep aproach to the part. Little do we know that this performance will be matched in this, the very same movie, by Tadanobu Asano's Kakihara Ichi's antagonist and main victim. The catch though is that the masochistic nature of Kakihara wants to die in the hands of Ichi, thous creating cat and mouse race with the roles reversed, the mouse searching for the cat, with the dynamic duo of the actors shining all through it. But this movie also offers some under the table characters, so to speak, that pull all the strings behind the events of the movie. Ichi's manipulative "savior" Jijii played by Shinya Tsukamoto and Paulyn Sun's Karen the only female character of any stature in this male dominated world. Needless to say the backstabings and schemes from these two come and go in terrific style through amazing precision in every expression, even in the tone of the voice, by the two actors, that acts as a good counterpart to Ichi's and Kakihara's volatile overkill action and violence.

This review wouldn't be complete though without mentioning the visual feast that this movie is. I'll keep it to the basics so as not to spoil it to you. Only by looking at Kakihara's face on the cover you can understand the over the top spectrum that the movie places itself. Actually, let me have another run at this part of the review beacuse that stupid excuse of an explanation (looking at Kakihara's...) doesn't do the movie justice, nor does it serves the purposes of a review or prepares you for the gruesome content of the movie. So once again, the extreme imagery of the movie contains: persons being torn in half, sliced faces in a variety of different ways, actually sliced bodies in a variety of different ways, cheeks being pulled ot of their place by two bare hands, blood painted rooms, beat up hookers etc... If you think your up for all these go, rush to see the film! If not see it anyway and have something interesting to tell the psychologist in the next session.

In conclussion the movie is a thrill ride like no other with an obscene nature that could sicken even the strongest stomach and make horror veterans hide like little girls (maybe I exaggerate a little but the movie deserves it). It has no deeper meaning, no message in a bottle for humanity. It's a spectacle that will leave you astounded through its violence, energy and sheer audacity.