REVIEWED BY-STEVE GENIER
SHINJUKU TRIAD SOCIETY (1995)
CAST-TAKESHI CAESAR, KYOSUKE IZUTSU, REN OSUGI, KIPPEI SHIINA, TOMOROWO TAGUCHI and AIRI YANAGI.
RAINY DOG (1997)
CAST-SHO AIKAWA, LIANMEI CHEN, MING-JUN GAO, JIANQIN HE and TOMOROWO TAGUCHI
LEY LINES(1999)
CAST-SHO AIKAWA, SAMUEL POP ANING, YUKIE ITOU, MICHISUKE KASHIWAYA, KAZUKI KITAMURA and DAN LI
SOURCE-ARTSMAGIC DIGI 3 PACK REGION 1 NTSC.
Artsmagic brought us yet another reason why these guys are serious about Asian cinema and bringing it to mainstream North America. This latest offering is their first attempt at releasing a 3 disc digi-pack and what a start. Takeshi Miike’s BLACK LABEL SOCIETY are three well filmed journey’s into hard driving character led stories. All films are different in their views, but all retain a very realistic view of the underbelly of their depicted societies. Though along with the realistic elements of these films, there is the trademark surrealism that Miike is notorious for. There are many returning actors in each of these films, but they take on a whole new role, the only common threads between the there films are the director, producer and the company involved Kadokawa Daiei Pictures. The same company who brought us the famed ZATOICHI series and more.
SHINJUKU TRIAD SOCIETY (1995)
The first disc in the set and Miike’s first entry into this very indepth look into three very different areas of organized crime and how they effect almost all areas of life around them. One most important aspect Miike’s preaches loud and clear, with organized crime there is no boundaries where it can’t reach, including the family aspect. Brother versus brother, Father versus son and so on. In SHINJUKU, we are taken under the wing of dirty cop, Tatsuhito who’s endless pursue a crime lord has him tracking from the city life of Shinjuku to the foothills of Taiwan. Where he learns the secrets of the human organ’s trade. Things are not easy to conclude though, with his brother representing the origination’s lawyer and possibly the crime lord’s gay lover.
A solid entree indeed, very powerful in several ways, the family element being one of the most powerful. Showing that not only can you influence your younger siblings, but also how that influence can turn it’s dirty back on you. Acting is a solid case, everything being very convincing as well as being as dark as the theme in which incases the whole storyline. Miike’s doesn’t shy away from his usual tactics with the surreal here. Though viewing most of this film, you get that feeling of an underbelly wanting to dredge up from the city streets. Ah, and there is no disappointment in that department either. His use of sexual escapades is almost surreal or at least to those it is usually a naked theme not just in their eyes, but in their minds as well. Of course for the most part, they are all gay. One of the most explosive scenes being a police integration, where the only way to extract information from the suspect is through the one investigator’s strange methods. He being a midget in size, rips the suspects pants down to his ankles and inserts his penis into the waiting anal area of the suspect. As the thrusts of savage being a cross feeling of hurt and pleasure, the suspect begins to spill the beans, all of them. Once all has being said, the suspect is left there wanting more. The suspect was male by the way, something I forgot to refer too.
Action and violence are both very active in this Miike film as in many of his. Though not quite as excessive as in many of his other films. That does mean the effectiveness them are any less. There are many shoot outs, and other major elements one might find in the usual Yakuza flick, but I must add this film like the other two the follow are not really Yakuza films in the traditional way. Though it being in Japan, this involves the Chinese Triad and ethnic mixing, a them that is pretty much one common thread between all three films.
Artsmagic has done a wonderful job with their process of bringing this to the light of the North America viewer. First making it excess able to us in the first place is a major bonus to Miike fans, it doesn’t stop there of course. Both picture and audio are very well engineered. The picture is very clear and without any signs of damage the film stock may have or not had in the first place. Colours are very vibrant and really highlight the over all feel of both story and theme of the film. One small disappointment though is the lack of Dolby Digital 5.1, it is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0, still sound is very clear and crisp. The extras are of the usual Artsmagic touch. Plenty of interview material here to enjoy. Two full interviews with Miike, one is solely bases on how SHINJUKU TRIAD SOCIETY began, and the methods he used during and after to bring it to the screen. The second interview is on his methods, influences etc. The third interview is with Miike’s longtime friend and producer, Yasushi Shimamuara. There is a great commentary with Midnight Eye’s main man Tom Mes, who is also a Miike expert. Rounding out the rest of the disc’s extras, there is also a trailer and artwork to view as well.
STORY-3.5 BITCH SLAPS PICTURE-3.5 BITCH SLAPS AUDIO-3 BITCH SLAPS EXTRAS-3 BITCH SLAPS OVERALL-3 BITCH SLAPS RAINY DOG (1997)
Recently kicked out of his Yakuza status. Yuji takes up being a hitman in a small rainy area of Taiwan. Then out of the blue a boy in which could be his actual son is left in his care. The boy being a mute tags along as Yuij attends to his job. His family begins to grow as he becomes involved with a prostitute. His feelings become even more stronger as he collects money to get both his newly found girlfriend and son away from all the danger that follows him. As he gathers enough money and has everything in place and on the way to getting his son and girlfriend out of there, his advisories close in on him making the escape all that much harder.
Once again Miike has given us a very powerfully built piece of hard luck action. Doom and gloom follows the main character through the rainy streets of a small Taiwanese city. Tons of gun play and action fill pretty much every aspect of RAINY DOG, one could say it’s not raining water but blood. It’s interesting seeing the two cultures collide both in front of the camera and behind. As Miike explains in one of the interviews included on this disc, they being the Japanese go into a project set in their ways, but with being in Taiwan changed most of that. Armed with a most Taiwanese crew and actors the whole look of this film is very different from the other two films in the series. The major factor being the overall environment, that constant rain was something the Japanese didn’t look at while thinking out their vision of Taiwan. All in all, it all works out for the best as RAINY DOG is most certainly one of the stronger entree by far.
The Artsmagic disc for RAINY DOG is much like it predecessor as it carries pretty much the same amount of extras. Armed with three interviews, two of which again are with Miike. The first talking about the filming of RAINY DOG, the second about his technics etc. Both sound and visuals are both above average, but once again the disc is missing that 5.1 track.
STORY-3.5 BITCH SLAPS PICTURE-3.5 BITCH SLAPS AUDIO-3 BITCH SLAPS EXTRAS-3 BITCH SLAPS OVERALL-3 BITCH SLAPS LEY LINES(1999)
Possibly my favorite of the three films, LEY LINES conveys are huge message of racial tensions. What it is like living in Japan, being of a mixed ethnic backgrounds, half Chinese, half Japanese. Life has scorned the three main characters to the point of doing anything to find a way out of Japan. They get themselves mixed up in a dark world of in which they have no control over, even though they seems to think the opposite.
Certainly the most powerful storyline out of the three films, LEY LINES is absolutely the main attraction of the three for me. Housing the strongest storyline, some of the most powerful performances and not to mention some great action to boot. Managing to keep his dark surreal theme intact as well. It’s funny how in all three of these film you as the viewer develop an close feel for the anti-heros. In this case, though not really anti-heros, but three normal kids who because of their backgrounds have been picked on all their lives, seek a better place to be. Sounds easy, but they choose to take the hard route in finding this lost paradise. Truly a great closing to one of the most underrated set fo films from Miike.
This is the last disc apart of the Artsmagic digi-pack. Once again both sound and visuals are very good, with only 5.1 audio missing. Extras are again pretty much the same routine as the first two discs. Three interviews, two with Miike the other with producer Yasushi Shimamuara. There is also the trailer, some bios and artwork. This is certainly a great way to start with their new direction with multi-disc sets. Great artwork and concept are key elements to get the general public to buy dvds, and this is actually what it has.
STORY-4 BITCH SLAPS PICTURE-3.5 BITCH SLAPS AUDIO-3 BITCH SLAPS EXTRAS-3 BITCH SLAPS OVERALL-3.5 BITCH SLAPS
OVERALL DIGI-PACK-3.5 BITCH SLAPS
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