Cortechba Overrated

ChanFamous I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Phillipa Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

WILLIAM FLANIGAN Viewed on DVD. Cinematography/lighting = seven (7) stars; editing/continuity = four (4) stars; translation = one (1) star. Director Takashi Miike delivers an ambiguous tale of Samurai Gun Slingers (or is it Cowboy Sword Swingers?) in the blood thirsty style of Quentin Tarantino who shows up in bookend cameo appearances (see below). Miike's fantasy film crams virtually every motion-picture myth from the Italian brand of the American Old West into the scenario pot (including the music) plus some clever original variations such as: a shootout at high (give or take) noon that occurs during a snow storm; Yakuza ancestors in the form of rival red and white town gangs who, of course, wear only red or white, respectively (to help the viewer determine which side a stunt actor is now on?); Samurai sword moves that deflect six-gun bullets; a hand-held Gatling gun with two-foot clip (for holding thousands of rounds?); a lynching Torii gate at the edge of town (instead of a lone leafless tree); the usual cluttered boot hill but with both above and below ground "burials"; saloon dancing entertainment that substitutes floor slithering for high kicking; and gold that looks freshly minted instead of freshly mined (so there's no mistaking it for fool's gold?). Acting is not so great and may have been negatively impacted by requiring all players to their deliver lines entirely in English (there is no voice-acting dubbing). Actresses and actors speak "high English" rather than "cowboy lingo," but retain the usual rising and falling intonations spoken by native Japanese (with a sentence-ending "ne" occasionally slipping out!). Stunt actors are kept busy dying many, many times as either Red Gang or White Gang members. Costumes are especially interesting. No one wears a white hat, since there are no "good guys" (some members of the Red Gang do wear white Hachimaki (headbands), though). These Yakuza fore runners also care a lot about there appearances, since their costumes always look brand new (including their baseball jackets!) as do their vast assortment of firearms and leather accessories (a gun collector's dream!). Special effects are modest but very well done. Editing and continuity are not quite there. The film is too long and sags when the satire hits a dry spot. Scenes often switch back and forth between sunshine, heavy (real not movie) rain, and snow (a lot of it). There is too much reliance on voice-over expository to fill in the gaps. Cinematography (wide screen, color) and scene lighting are fine. Surround-sound field is OK, but seems under used. Interior set used for the opening scenes features Tarantino as a gun fighter reacting to especially spicy sukiyaki in front of a painted back drop that includes the Japanese flag (way before it was adopted?) and Mount Fuji (closing interior scenes features an ancient Tarantino as a gun-shop proprietor zipping around in a racing wheel chair!). Some signs (including the town's name) are only partially translated. The English subtitle menu is confusing (since the film has only English dialog). (These subtitles are meant for the hard of hearing.) Credits are not translated which seems to be an especially disrespectful action by the film's director/producers directed against all those who helped to make this English-language movie possible! WILLIAM FLANIGAN, PhD.

Anssi Vartiainen All these Quentin Tarantino rip-offs simply make me appreciate his original films all the much more. Because obviously his particular style is not easy to pull off, seeing that these imitators keep failing. And failing spectacularly, at that.Case in point, Sukiyaki Western Django, a spaghetti western homage, starring an all-Asian cast yet taking place in the Wild West, specifically in Nevada. And, featuring a cameo by Tarantino himself, the only Caucasian dude in the whole movie. The reason it fails? It tries to be too much like a Quentin Tarantino film. It has an extreme case of style over substance, is filled with meaningless dialogues that don't connect with the plot in any way, has action scenes filled to the brim with gore, splatter and over the top stunts, cares more about looking cool than explaining any of its logic and is at its heart a big, nostalgic softie for the bygone days of film making. Unfortunately, here the mixture doesn't work and the whole film feels hollow and empty, instead of meaningful and revolutionary like most Tarantino films do.One of the reasons for this is simply the fact that the actors are nowhere near talented enough to pull off the nonchalant attitude needed to sell the premise. I can see that they would probably be fine in any other film, but here their talents are simply not enough. The other reason is the writing, which is riddled with spaghetti western clichés and conventions. And yeah, it's an homage, of course it has clichés. But the thing is, an homage still needs to do something new with the clichés, just like any other film. Either that, or it needs to be absolutely sure that it uses the clichés correctly and in a non-boring manner. Which this movie does not.Still, the film has its upsides. The action scenes are enjoyable, especially the final fight sequence, though once again I'm annoyed that the final confrontation is between two dudes despite the fact that the proposed toughest badass in the whole film is a lady. The said final battle also looks really good, although the rest of the film suffers from serious colour balance problems. But, the overall style and art design is solid, the actors try their best and the soundtrack has some really good moments.Personally I think that Sukiyaki Western Django tries too hard. It would have been a better film if wasn't trying to imitate Tarantino's style so heavily, though the fact that it did is understandable because the man himself was involved with the project. Nevertheless, if you're a die-hard fan of the so called Tarantino approved films, you should check this one out. If you're not, there are better films out there.

trashgang I really didn't know what to think about this flick before I have seen it and even afterwards I'm still confused. It starts of with Quentin Tarantino sitting before a fake western city or in other words, blue key. From there it is rather okay with the snake but then it changes into a rare western with two gangs fighting against each other for a mysterious treasure. There's also a stranger walking in town.It all looks like a great western story but it is the fact that Japanese people are involved that it just didn't work out as a western. maybe you shouldn't take it all that seriously because it is also the legend of Django. And Django we all knew by Franco Nero's performance. Secondly I watched it as a Takashi Miiki flick that should be full of gore and blood. But even there it failed a bit for me because the way the gore is added is a bit laughable and even funny. Other scene's the gore just works out fine. I just have mixed feelings toward this, to be honest, a samurai story played with a western background. Not my typical Miiki flick, I prefer his old school gore flicks.Gore 2/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 3/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 1/5

Sean Kelly I have yet to see any of Miike's any other films, and this is a great place to start. I would highly recommend that if you haven't already see Fistful of Dollars and/or Yojimbo, and perhaps Django as well (I have only seen Fistful so far), so that you really get the tongue in cheek homages and perhaps parodies in this film. Try and spot the obvious anachronisms (more in the dialogue). Some reviews that I have read have unfairly said that you need the English subtitles - you might want to use them the first time you watch it as I did just in case, but generally the English is quite good. Most of the English spoken by the main characters is understandable anyway, and that's what really matters. I think this is a nice touch, and another way of paying homage to the west. Tarantino's great too - worth watching just to hear him impersonating the Japanese accent (you'll see what I mean). I also love how it merges these western influences with Japanese in a Japanese setting, maybe because of the influence of Yojimbo as well it's unofficial remake (Fistful). You don't have to take this film terribly seriously - it's just really good fun, but there is the occasional serious moment, and despite what one one reviewer from Toronto said, there is a decent amount of characterisation, despite the possible barriers created by using English and by using the basic man with no name as the lead.