Recent Reviews for Samurai Fiction
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MCT:June 12, 2008At first, Samurai Fiction looks like one of those old black and white samurai movies but has a visual quality of its' own shot in black and white with color in key scenes. There are a lot of characters, some more important than others, but each have their own uniqueness and qualities. The bad guys are equally likable as the good guys in the quest for a samurai's honor
The swordfights that are seen are pretty basic and simple, nothing elaborate but with realism. Even without a high action level, this movie has a high entertainment factor for the story and visuals. The old ninja is my favorite.
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MCT:April 10, 2008A good story, I'm only disappointed that they made it black and white with some blood red color now and then. Otherwise it's an excellent ninjs/samurai film.
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MCT:March 17, 2008Aaron Yamasato needs to take a lesson from director Hiroyuki Nakano. This is how you write your first samurai movie. First things first, what you see on the cover is the opening sequence of this film and yes, Tarantino uses this in Kill Bill.
This film is a mixture of the past and the present. I say this because it plays out like a classic samurai picture, except with more modernized humor, acting, and dialogue. Considering that this film came out around 1998, it makes sense. If you look at this film from a high level, the story isn't all that spectacular. A samurai hunting another samurai for a special sword. What makes this film entertaining is the way this story is told. It is shot entirely in black and white, which gives it that classic look. There is only a hint of color, for a second at a time, that shows up every so often throughout the movie. I wouldn't say it is brilliant, but the way that it is used is quite interesting.
A few other successful aspects of this film are the characters and the cinematography. The story provides a small variety of different characters and if you combine them with the good camera work, the film flows nicely.
The most disappointing part of this film is the sword play. There is not enough of it, especially in the middle, and the choreography, while decent, is just not entertaining enough. Then again, everybody has different tastes, so the sword play may actually be good enough for some people. Once again, the camera work is good for these sequences.
As far as the music goes, you will either like it or hate it. I myself enjoyed it. Tomoyasu Hotei is not only in this film, but he composed the music as well. Like the film, it is a mixture of music that you will possibly here in classic as well as current films. The current sounding rock-techno stuff may sound out of place to some people. Watch this film and decide for yourself.
The acting is pretty good. A few characters are over acted, but I assume that is what the director is going for. There is also a couple characters that are underdeveloped and underused, in my opinion. The star of the show is Tamaki Ogawa who acts as good as she looks.
Give this film a watch if you want an old-fashioned samurai flick that is a bit modernized in some departments.
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MCT:November 15, 2007
Very funny movie...Quentin Tarantino pays a little homage to this film in Kill Bill 1. Very dry humor...love it!
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MCT:September 2, 2007
A very funny and unorthodox look at the life of the samurai with innovative direction. Recommended to fans of the genre!!
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MCT:June 19, 2007
There's some points where it drags and falls down, but it's an amusing and fun film. It has an energy which is surprisingly intoxicating. :)
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MCT:June 16, 2007
The cinematography was excellent in this black and white samurai film. I liked how the movie had a modern touch and a bit of humour to keep it from being too serious. Superb score, wordrobe, props, and locations made the feel of the film very authentic.
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MCT:June 15, 2007
The black and white adds a lot to this one. Great, great, great movie. Tomonoyasu is a great villan.
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MCT:June 3, 2007
Very well shot in beautiful black and white, this film has all the pull of an old-fashioned samurai film, but it's built to modern tastes and a contemporary soundtrack. Very entertaining.
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MCT:May 27, 2007
Shot in a beautiful black & white that's occasionally punctuated with vibrant color for effect, this movie is in the style of a classic samurai film. It's filtered through a modern sensibility that offers quirky humor and a very contemporary soundtrack, so be forewarned.
Recommended. -
MCT:May 13, 2007With all its misses in plot, and the usual slow pace in Japanese films, it is gorgeously shot. Sometimes that's enough.
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MCT:May 2, 2007
lol.if u like the old sameria movies c it,all origianl scenery/that type of filming isn't done anymore,my version u have to read,don't know if they dub it......loved it throughly
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MCT:February 12, 2007
A comical samurai movie at times though it does have its serious side and convays an interesting message in some points
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MCT:February 12, 2007
Fresh and new for a new generation, but SF still captures the same immortal spirit that made jidai geki films so memorable decades ago.
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MCT:December 18, 2006
THE SEARCH TO RECOVER A PRICELESS SWORD FROM A MASTER SAMURAI RESULTS IN A YOUNG LORDS FRIENDS BEING KILLED.....A HUMOUR LADEN TALE WITH PLETY OF SWORDPLAY FOR SAMURAI MOVIE FANS....RECOMMENDED
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MCT:September 18, 2006Tomoyasu Hotei, not only stars in this but also scored the whole thing. He's like the Santana of Japana... LOL
