Years ago my son suggested I watch a movie called ICHI THE
KILLER telling me that the director behind it, Takashi Miike, was amazing. I
went in unsure of what to expect knowing my son’s taste for the odd and
finished thinking that he was right, Miike was an amazing director. The comic
book stylizing, the excessive gore, the story, all combined to make an
effective movie experience. After that I was hooked, looking for anything he
did and enjoying them all. At age 59 with more than 104 movies to his credit,
he hasn’t slowed down. FIRST LOVE is his latest.
The story involves several different tales that combine
together to make one, similar to the films of Guy Ritchie. One involves a young
listless boxer named Leo (Masataka Kubota) who falls during a match and learns
he has a tumor that he will soon die from. Another is Monica (Sakurako
Konishi), a prostitute paying off the debt of her father and whose apartment is
used by Yase to deal drugs. These two have troubled pasts that haunt them to
this day. Then we have young crime boss Kase (Shota Sometani) who along with
corrupt police detective Otomo (Nao Omori) plans on stealing drugs from his own
organization. Lastly we have the Yakuza boss recently released from prison and his
rivalry with the Triads for control of the city.
The stage set, all of these various characters come into
play with one another along with several others making for a frantic evening
and action packed film that still contains more story than many films seen
today. Kase steals the drugs which were being kept in Monica’s apartment but
Monica escapes. Otomo tries to catch her but seeing her running Leo comes to
her rescue. Kase and Otomo put out the word she’s responsible for the theft and
now Yase’ psychotic girlfriend Julie (Becky) is out for blood along with a
group of assassins brought in by the Yakuza.
If all of this sounds confusing it really isn’t. The story
is told in such a straightforward way that it makes sense while viewing and the
actors are different enough that you won’t get one confused with another. One
critic compared this film to those of the Coen brothers. It’s filled with rich
and various characters brought together under unusual circumstances and turned
loose into a chaotic worlds where things they do seem strange and make sense at
the same time. This film provides all of those things.
The thing about the films of Miike though are that they
don’t always stick to a single genre. This is a perfect example of that. You
have the romantic story of our two lead characters, there is the Yakuza film
with its criminal ties, you have an action film with the various fights that
take place and then there is the kicker, the dark comedy that takes place
throughout the film. I mean come on, who sends a one armed killer with a pump
action shotgun out to kill someone? Miike also adds those touches of gore that
he’s become associated with, most notable a beheading.
I found myself pulled into this world of intrigue and mayhem
even if it took a little bit to get the ball rolling. As it progressed I
wondered what would happen next. Then at times I found myself actually laughing
out loud at certain sequences. By the end of the film I knew once again that
Miike had created something unique and entertaining.
This film may not rank among the best of the career for
Miike but it is one that I highly recommend. He delivers what fans love and
offers something new in the process. It will be an opening into his world for
those who haven’t seen it yet and my guess is you’ll seek out more. This one is
definitely worth watching.
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