Bloody Mary
11-20-2005, 01:24 PM
Kitamura meshes Sergio Leone style and Japanese sensabilities...
I don't want to sound biased but you would be too if, without fail, you love every movie this director makes. There is a moment, in Aragami, where the one character confesses to be the said Aragami, a murderous and unstoppable god of battle, the scene plays out for what must have been almost a whole minute with complete silence and then the two characters bust out laughing. I was dying through the whole thing, it was truly joyful to watch a scene play out without a quick cut or shakey documentory style camera angle because in America we would have ruined. We would have ruined because some suit would be sitting in the editing room going "You can't just have them sit there and not talk! They have to say something!!!" No they don't have to say anything. The Japanese are doing great things with movies and styles that have been developed here in the US, Italy, and England. More and more we're seeing movies like: VERSUS, ALIVE, AZUMI, THE RETURNER, and ARAGAMI, that explore the form of cinema with the freedom of style that they are allowed. Aragami is not perfect but that is part of it's appeal. It's very short (1hour 16min) but it feels like a much longer movie (not a boring movie just longer, El Mariachi feels long too and it's fantastic) than it is. Most Japanese movies ARE hit and miss with me, I don't love them all mind you, but it's getting to a point where I feel like director Kitamura can do no wrong. Every movie he makes is exciting, cool, and yet intelligent in that he explores new directions everytime.
I don't want to sound biased but you would be too if, without fail, you love every movie this director makes. There is a moment, in Aragami, where the one character confesses to be the said Aragami, a murderous and unstoppable god of battle, the scene plays out for what must have been almost a whole minute with complete silence and then the two characters bust out laughing. I was dying through the whole thing, it was truly joyful to watch a scene play out without a quick cut or shakey documentory style camera angle because in America we would have ruined. We would have ruined because some suit would be sitting in the editing room going "You can't just have them sit there and not talk! They have to say something!!!" No they don't have to say anything. The Japanese are doing great things with movies and styles that have been developed here in the US, Italy, and England. More and more we're seeing movies like: VERSUS, ALIVE, AZUMI, THE RETURNER, and ARAGAMI, that explore the form of cinema with the freedom of style that they are allowed. Aragami is not perfect but that is part of it's appeal. It's very short (1hour 16min) but it feels like a much longer movie (not a boring movie just longer, El Mariachi feels long too and it's fantastic) than it is. Most Japanese movies ARE hit and miss with me, I don't love them all mind you, but it's getting to a point where I feel like director Kitamura can do no wrong. Every movie he makes is exciting, cool, and yet intelligent in that he explores new directions everytime.