13 Assassins Review

• 23rd Sep 2011

When 13 Assassins was first announced it seemed to come as quite a shock to those that only know Miike Takaeshi as an original and eccentric director. But for those that have followed the great man through his prolific career, this seemed to be the start of something altogether more different and welcome. What we are now blessed with is this generations Seven Samurai (a reference that is not used lightly), as Miike has crafted and fashioned a engaging story, characters and an utterly awe inspiring final third which truly makes this one of the best features of 2011.

Director Miike is infamous among both film fans and the BBFC for his genre breaking, bad taste making pieces of cinematic naughtiness. Ichi The Killer is still not completely available uncut within Britain due to a particular scene, involving a razor blade and a female nipple. It seems his films always seem to provoke either disgust or controversy leading up to, and including their release.

It seems some viewers miss interpret the very dark comedy and tonality of his films. Case in point , the vile and uncomfortable subject matter included within Visitor Q, Gozu and Ichi The Killer. They are all incredibly humorous at points. Everything from Ichi’s OTT violence, through to Visitor Q’s extreme lactation (along with corpse shagging) and Gozu’s ladle inserted into rear, are so uncomfortable and bizarre to watch that you can not help but laugh involuntarily.

Focusing on the final days of fural Japan and the end of the samurai way. Lord Naritsugu is a ruthless warlord, next in line to be the Shogun. Its up to twelve samurai (and one insanely deranged scavenger) to assassinate Naritsugu and prevent a political war.

13 Assassins is truly impressive, everything from its band of samurai (all of whom have characters flushed out and are engaging) through to its violence and action, there is very little to fault. The final confrontation between our heroes and the deadly warlord is utterly jaw dropping. Having seen Miike use CGI effects to his advantage over this previous work, to finally see some practical effects take place just provides more plus points to his work of art.

What is utterly mind blowing is the climatic town battle, which rages on for well over 40 minutes. It is a dose of non-stop, balls to the wall, samurai action. There has never been anything quite as impressive as this , for a very long time in cinema. And it is all the more better for and because of it.

I mention it has a little fault and this is down to the fact it doesn’t quite feel as distinctively Miike as his previous work. But this is a nit pick as this is a more mature, and less rough around the edges work then he is known for. Some might find this distracting (myself also included), but as the film progresses it becomes clear how much he has developed as a director.

This is a mature and less quirky effort in Miike’s never ending catalogue of films, which is welcome and one which is also a good sign and possible turning point for his future work, which was visible in the more realistic Rainy Dog and Ley Lines. After Sukiyaki Western Django (which was a little to experimental for its own good), 13 Assassins is a breath of retro fresh air.  

Dominic O’Brien