Harry here... ahhhhh... Miike... Like a lick of a public toilet seat, he brings cold shivvers to the spine! Anytime there's a new Miike film, there's a reason to fear the silver screen! You never know what you'll see, but you know you won't be forgetting whatever it will be. Right now, there's a boy named Neil... he's smiling.
Hey Harry,
Motorized Instinct here (by the way, the name is from Dawn of the Dead. You know, when the one eyed scientist called the zombies, "...Pure Motorized Instinct".) Tuesday was the North American premiere of Takashi Miike's Graveyard of Honor. Like his many other Yakuza films it was sadistic, gory, extreme and at times didn't make a hell of alot of sense. But unlike his other ganster efforts this one was not done in a gory "Good Times" way. It was sick, disturbing, sadistic and AMAZING! This is a nihilist's wet dream. The film's theme is very much entrenched in the existentialist philosophy, but the main character Rikuo Ishimatsu's go WAY beyond those of the average anti-hero.
SOME MINOR SPOILERS***
The story centers itself around Rikuo and his quick ascension up the Yakuza ladder. He is young, but one of the most feared gansters of them all because of the disregard to his life and others. He is an excellent character with depth, but make no mistake he is a horrible human being. During the middle of the film you will slightly endulge in his bizarre and funny actions, but you will always think back to the things he did at the beginning and never fully warm up to him. I won't describe the actions that Rikuo does, but lets just say he has a definate problem with women. The movie is amazing in the sense that Miike consistantly shows you things you will never see in a "normal" gangster film, while keeping the genre favorites (shoot outs, cool dialogue, and funny characters) that we've come to love in ganster films. But this is not Goodfellas! It is a gangster film in plot only. Its heart (if it has one) is placed in a darker more somber area that crime movies usually don't dare go near. This is a movie that has to be seen (HAS TO BE SEEN) to fully appreciate. I feel if i describe the plot of character action in the film it will not do it justice. I have not seen all of Miike's work, but from what i have seen Graveyard of Honor is up there with Audition as one of his best. He may do alot of less serious films, but when he does it definitily leaves an impression.
Motorized Instinct out
