Review of Sukiyaki Western Django (2007) by Rajneel S — 08 Jul 2009

It's difficult to take any film seriously when the very title is a cheesy pun. I mean 'Sukiyaki Western' as opposed to 'Spaghetti Western'? And that it tries to be a prequel to the film "Django" is also a bit of a headscratcher as well.

Not so much however is the plot - an unsubtle blending of "Yojimbo" and "A Fistful of Dollars" (technically the same movie, the latter a Western remake) - worked into a pastiche of everything else under the sun.

Oddball and infamous director Takashi Miike's vision and direction is easy to see if you're a film fan, but what really collapses this film is the fact that its all just a film-buff-mindfield with bucketloads of homage and little substance.

Miike is so busy trying to emulate (and parody) the works of Leone and Corbucci that he doesn't seem to notice that the film has turned into a mess of shallow characters, typical Japanese over-obsession with over-the-top visuals and Japanese actors haplessly speaking in awkward phonetic English.

But there is a lot to be enjoyed, regardless, and the film's ludicrous presentation, production values, homage-o-rama trappings and Miike's iconic black comedy will no doubt make this a cult-favorite for years to come.

And if that doesn't seal the deal, then director Quentin Tarantino's hilarious, fourth-wall-breaking, Clint-Eastwood-impersonation will have geek-cinema-philes begging for more. Misfire? For sure.

Fun? Yes!