Izo was really good but mainly just because of how weird it was. I usually dislike Miike movies (Gozu, Visitor Q, Audition) but sometimes I really enjoy his stuff
i may have worn sandals in the past but thats because it was hot. - sole
locke cole wrote:Izo was really good but mainly just because of how weird it was. I usually dislike Miike movies (Gozu, Visitor Q, Audition) but sometimes I really enjoy his stuff
You like Izo because it's weird.... but you dislike Visitor Q.
I'm confused.
I should give Izo another chance though. I got too hyped based on cast, thought it was boring and was kinda zoning out before it finished. I might like it better now though.
i wouldn't say they were poorly choreographed, pretty standart japanese stuff (obv we're not dealing with LW&C here, but still). I remember there was one sequence where they even used a little wire action and some NICE overhead shots, which is incredible rare for a jap movie
while we're here, what' everybody's favorite miike? i'm going with visitor q
Izo's form is a pure stylistic exercise. It's waaayyy closer to Suzuki's Pistol Opera and Jodorowsky's El Topo than any actual swordplay flick. It's self-consciously slow and alienating and I'd never watch it if I wanted to be entertained, but as far as super-pretentious philosophical art about the Buddhist cycle of life and death, it's great. I'd definitely qualify it as the most serious and heavy Miike film I've seen and it's certainly made me respect him all the more for it.
I think people's expectations really hurt their enjoyment of the film. They marketed it as an action film because that was the best chance for it to perform at the box office, but it's a huge disservice to the film.
as for my favorite Miike, I'm going to be super weird and say Deadly Outlaw: Rekka. That film has ZERO intellectual value but is a helluvalot of fun.
Funky Butler wrote:usually i dislike miike stuff, but for some reason this seems like it could work
You have to watch Happiness of the Katakuris. It's completely unlike any of his other movies and it's the only one of his movies that I like (that I've seen, Bird People in China looks interesting).
It's like a horrormusicalcomedy. Completely weird and off the wall and funny and awesome.
Funk Docta Bombay wrote:Izo's form is a pure stylistic exercise. It's waaayyy closer to Suzuki's Pistol Opera and Jodorowsky's El Topo than any actual swordplay flick. It's self-consciously slow and alienating and I'd never watch it if I wanted to be entertained, but as far as super-pretentious philosophical art about the Buddhist cycle of life and death, it's great. I'd definitely qualify it as the most serious and heavy Miike film I've seen and it's certainly made me respect him all the more for it.
I think people's expectations really hurt their enjoyment of the film. They marketed it as an action film because that was the best chance for it to perform at the box office, but it's a huge disservice to the film.
.
i'd agree with most of this, def the El Topo comparison. i don't know about Pistol Opera though, to me that was purely a visual movie - it didn't have an underlying philsophy like the other two. It does have allusions to the same ideas of cycle of life and death, but i think suzuki used them more as flourishes and plot devices to stage some cool sequences than to actually get a point across
On a totally different side of things, it's interesting that cole thought Visitor Q was disgusting but liked Ichi which was infinitely more physically graphic. Probably a good testament to how much effective messed ideas and implications can be as oposed to close up nipple slicings