Henry Firstvillage Lately I have become interested in samurai films, so I have been watching quite a lot of them - from the entertaining Lone Wolf series to the Kurosawa classics, with the late legend Toshiro Mifune. Those old movies are great but they lack in good resolution and better color. So I came across this Japanese film "13 Assassins" filmed in 2010. Recent stuff, sounded interesting. So I watched it - very good production, with a stellar cast including a member of the Japanese band SMAP who plays the bad guy. The problem starts with the plot. It's the old "small group of brave samurai against bad guy with army in larger number" just like Seven Samurai, The Last Samurai and 47 Ronin. Here, the 13 assassins are gathered to fight a sadistic lord. Despite the fact that the plot is more of the same, this is a post-Hollywood, post-video game samurai movie. It has all the action, sound effects and visuals of the blockbusters, including bombs and boars on fire (yes)... and gore, lots of gore. It has disturbing scenes, like the amputated woman and even a non-explicit homosexual intercourse. The biggest problem for me is that the guy who hired the 13 samurai to kill the lord Naritsugu actually had the opportunity to finish the job at the bridge. He had his fellows pointing their guns to him (but that would make the film end at the 1 hour mark.) Anyway, this is entertainment for the young audiences, craving some ketchup. Great production but lacking substance.

Gauravpati Singh I was actually looking for the 1963 Black & white movie this one is a remake of but got this one almost by accident.However, I'm not exactly disappointed because it's a Takashi Miike movie(not surprising he directed it if you know his works). This wasn't my first rodeo with Miike & I've watched his earlier works like 'Koroshiya Ichi"(Ichi the Killer) & "Visitor Q" &"Audition". So I expected the "Splatter Gore" he is so well known for & also his penchant for the Strange & Weird.But "13 Assassins" is him with a milder version of violence(on movie scale,that's comparable to Tarantino bloodfest &not overkill on fountains of blood except for one explosion scene in the movie that'll actually make you go "Soreha no Takashidesu")&no weirdness in story,probably since it's already off a well-known play & a movie.But characters in the movie have definitely been revamped to up the ante & have their own unique identifiers of 'just-off' which is super-cool! So whether it's super-samurais Shinzaemon & Hanbei(one master-less Ronin & other serving Akashi-clan tyrant Daimyo),classmates,rivals & with distinct qualities of opposing natures chosen to oppose each other, a violent Hiruyama(movie shows adviser Doi picking him for his "spirit of sword" kenki),apprentice Samurais Higoichi & Hioke who train in explosives but almost always get time of explosions wrong or mercenary spear-man Sahara,who just wants to live big..they are ALL a bit-off normal & chosen specifically to assassinate an even crazier & almost philosophically sadistic Daimyo(feudal lord) & King's adopted(read 'natural' or 'Bastard') Half-brother Naritsigu from a well-drilled Akashi army led by Hanbei. Weirdest & wildest of them all is 13th member,almost accidentally so & clearly inspired by Akira Kurosawa's 'Seven Samurai''s Kikoichi character immortalized by Toshiro Mifune, the wild-ling bandit Kiga Koyita(played by Yusuke Iseya,who's a far cry from Toshiro,but is equally comic & nearly as unkillable). Takashi Miike got a lot of fun out of him but actually made him almost magically able to heal a sword wound & run around jumping after.He's one character who is hard to swallow..but rest are well-cast & great. A driven Shinzaemon(Koji Yakusho), strategic & 'okashira'(boss & trainer of 13) Kuranaga(Matsukata), Lost to gambling&finally-found a purpose(Takayuki Yamada with probably the widest scoped character of 13),Harakiri-driven Mamiya clan Zuso(Uchino)&Yahaachi Horii(Koen Kondo) are all well cast.Honor killing,Harakiri by Seppuku & assassination is the crux of the whole movie.The sadistic character of Goro Inagaki as Naritsugu deserves all the plaudits it can get & it was superbly put to life.He rapes,murders,mutilates,philosophizes, strategizes &dismisses his servants & enemies alike with equal disdain & is one for archives! All in all,story is well known,chase & strategizing & period drama dialog straight out of a Manga & actors brilliant.Definitely the best I've seen of Takashi Miike.When he's not being strange,he is one of Japan's best directors.Worth a watch as much as 1963 Eiichi Kudo version.Ones who like action will love it.

SnoopyStyle It's Feudal Japan. Lord Naritsugu Matsudaira is a cruel master and also a rising star. Shinza is convinced to assassinate Naritsugu and he recruits 11 samurais. They plan to ambush him on his trip back to the Akashi land. The men get lost in the mountains and meet hunter Kiga Koyata. The 13 assassins fight overwhelming odds after converting the town of Ochiai into a fortress.It's a samurai movie with big action and a solid story. The story is well laid out although I would have preferred it to be snappier. Samurai movies do have a lot of ponderous expositions. The lady with no arms is creepy. Also some of the assassins don't get enough screen time. There are 13 of them. However it doesn't get better than the big giant samurai battle in the last act.

DavuLynchesta 13 Assassins is a film by renowned director Takashi Miike, a man most famous for films like Ichi the Killer, Visitor Q, and Audition. If you're familiar with his previous work then it comes to no surprise that 13 Assassins is a very violent movie, though the violence in this film is never as "disturbing" as in his other films. It is also a remake of the 1963 film of the same name directed by Eiichi Kudô. In short, 13 Assassins is both a visual pleasure and an engaging tale of violence, honor, and tactics set in 19th century Japan. If you want to watch a film with well directed action, then this is a great film to watch.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~13 Assassins is a very drab looking movie, and I use the term "drab" in the most respectful way possible. For most of the film the screen is covered in shades of grey, while other scenes are painted in such striking color that you can immediately tell what Miike was going for, which was to show the obvious wealth gap between the rich and poor. While it's never pointed out specifically, it would be an historically accurate representation of Japanese society in the 19th century. The actors, particularly Tsuyoshi Ihara, all do an exceptional job at giving their characters a sense of realism and a legitimate purpose in their reasons for joining the Assassins. Every character breathes with life in ways that few films manage to do and this might be the strongest aspect of the entire film. We often see characters interacting with each other and making jokes in way that provides some insight into why they're risking their lives for each other.Despite for a few quick battles, much of the action is reserved for the final act of the film which serves as a very long battle in a small town turned into a death trap. Some might say that the battle alone is reason enough for watching the movie, but I personally found it boring at parts, though I recognize how impressive it all is despite that. The scenes with actor Gorô Inagaki are easily the show stealer for me. His character, Lord Naritsugu Matsudaira, is such a comically evil bad guy that despite his incredibly disgusting actions, I can't help but love him. His cruelty is unmatched in this film and everyone, including his own men, knows it.I would recommend 13 Assassins very much. It might be Miike's most approachable film and is a great example of blending story and action in a way that doesn't feel forced and trite.