Ichi the Killer (2001)

Surprisingly incoherent and boring

A very feeble attempt at affirmatie action

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Amazingly funny and horrific! There's a complete artistic side to it and I love it!

Rarely am I so conflicted on a film I dislike like "Ichi the Killer", but I guess that's appropriate for a movie that tries so much. I appreciate its attempt at marrying sadomasochism and abuse with tropes of yakuza films, slasher flicks, exploitation revenge fantasies, and superhero stories. There's some creative kills, trippy editing, and the theme of pain cycling between danger and pleasure is present. But how it's reflected in the story comes off as convoluted, overindulgent, and inconsistent in tone. The portrayal of sexual violence flip flops between cartoonish and disturbing, robbing it of impact despite it's notorious reputation. Ichi and Kakihara overshadow pretty much any character in terms of relevance (even Ichi's handler), yet only one of them has a fully-fleshed out arc. And while the plot points all tie together, it's done in a way that kills any momentum it built during its stretched-out runtime to where the climax is just one pathetic joke. Some of my complaints could be excused with "it's a black comedy", but in execution I found I was laughing at the movie rather than with it.

It's easy to see why some people would hold Takashi Miike's "Ichi the Killer" in high regard. It's an ultra violent comic book come to life, with plenty of hip, high style filmmaking from the director and his crew. It's a powerful experience, but a minimalist one: some viewers are likely to be completely turned off, especially considering the fact that the women here don't fare too well. Still, this is effective audacious entertainment from Miike, a man who clearly believes in the adage of "anything goes". The story is anything but predictable, and dwells on such themes as sadism and masochism. There are tons of deliciously over the top gore gags, of both the practical and digital variety.Tadanobu Asano stars as Kakihara, a mobster who's coldly determined to find out who is responsible for the disappearance of his crime boss, Anjo. You see, Kakihara loves inflicting pain, and having it inflicted upon himself, and nobody could abuse him like his boss did. While this is going on, a young man named Ichi (Nao Omori) is going around ridding the world of bullies; Ichi has a particular hatred for this kind of person. At least, that would seem to be the case.This would have to rate as must viewing for any fan of hardcore action *and* horror, and for anybody who likes to watch movies for the violence. This is a very insane and very brutal film. Miike takes a couple of minutes to ease us into the story, in the meantime dazzling us with a plethora of quick imagery. He gets deeply committed performances out of his well chosen cast. Asano and Omori are both excellent, as are Shin'ya Tsukamoto and the lovely Paulyn Sun. It isn't long until characters in this tale begin to be tortured, and some of this torture is hard to watch indeed.By the time this is over, the overall effect is rather wearying.Seven out of 10.

Takashi Miike is never far from the centre of controversy. "Audition" (1999), is a fantastic movie and one of the best horror movies Japan has to offer. It's only nature that Miike would return to his roots with the yakuza genre sooner or later, but who knew it would be this intense?Based on Hideo Yamamoto's manga series. "Ichi The Killer" tells the story of rival yakuza gangs and the involvement of a scarred and psychologically damaged man, Ichi, who is manipulated into assaulting or killing rival faction members. Leading to sadomasochistic yakuza enforcer Kakihara, to eagerly await a final showdown with this supposed "dangerous" individual.Without really spoiling anything, the title credits set the tone for this movie by literally appearing in Ichi's ejaculation. So there clearly is a level of taste in this film that may or may not be for you, the film is outright banned in several locations because of this. I've seen it once and its shock value does overwhelm its pacing in many areas, with the final 40 minutes becoming much clearer when following the narrative. Music-wise the soundtrack is pretty great and either way the movie is a mess in terms of gore and story telling, yet there is something surprisingly engrossing where certain events take you. Maybe I missed a lot the first time viewing and it runs a little too long for its own good, but I really found myself enjoying it and inevitably eager to see it again.Final Verdict: In essence, "Ichi The Killer" is pretty forgetful when considering Takashi's other works. But if you're a fan of his then I highly recommend it. 7/10.