Dead or Alive (R-Rated Edition)
buy bestselling dvd movies, videos find reviews, ratings, prices
|
 |
List Price: $19.95
Our Price:
$17.99
You Save: $1.96
Features
• Color
• DVD-Video
• Subtitled
• Widescreen
• NTSC
In Theaters : 2000
DVD Release : 27 May, 2003 |
| [ + Zoom ] [ Buy Now ] |
DVD : Usually ships in 24 hours |
|
|
Dead or Alive (R-Rated Edition) description
The director of Dead or Alive, Takashi Miike, made his name on the international scene with Audition, a chilling psychological thriller that builds from a quiet start towards a prolonged torture sequence almost too unbearable to watch. But such deliberate pacing isn't typical of Miike, whose movies often assault the viewer with an onslaught of slam-bang action that makes John Woo look like Eric Rohmer. Dead or Alive, his most successful cops-vs-yakuza thriller to date, kicks off with six nonstop minutes of machine gun-paced violence, sex, and slaughter, all set to a pounding heavy-metal beat. Thereafter things calm down a little, though not much. Given Miike's penchant for murky, livid-toned visuals and skewed camera angles, it's not always too easy to work out exactly who's doing what to whom, but the general outline's clear enough. The Tokyo underworld is being torn apart by a turf war between the yakuza gangs and the invading Chinese triads. Ambitious yakuza member Ryuichi (Riki Takeuchi) isn't above playing both sides off against each other in his bid for power, while police detective Jojima (Sho Aikawa), himself none too scrupulous in his methods, is out to destroy the gangs. Into this conventional plot framework Miike piles enough warped characters and bizarre, twisted happenings to fuel half-a-dozen Tarantino movies, while cheerfully borrowing--and inflating--key moments from such hard-boiled gangster-noirs as The Big Heat and Kiss Me Deadly. One character deep-fries his own hand, a stripper is drowned in a paddling-pool filled with her own excrement, and the literally apocalyptic finale, the showdown to end all showdowns, will leave you gasping. The appallingly prolific Miike, who regularly makes about five movies a year, has since directed two sequels--the first only three months after the original. --Philip Kemp |
|
Dead or Alive (R-Rated Edition) Customer Reviews
|
|
|
|
♥♥♥♥♥ |
Not One Of Miike's Better Yakuza Films
|
My review of "Dead Or Alive," refers to the region 4 import. I have been viewing a wide range of films the last 3 weeks. Running the gamut from horror, comedy, thriller, drama, and action films. I only own a few of Miike's yakuza films, and while this one is interesting, I did not find it that great a film as so many other viewers did. I'll save those higher ratings for "Yakuza Demon," and "Rainy Dog." When I first saw this film I sort of had the feeling that this was not going to be my type of yakuza film. While the film starts off interesting enough, especially with the hits against the other gangsters, there were too many strange elements in the films opening scenes that I just knew were going to lead this film toward a strange direction. And this was further strengthened by the hit in the mens restroom. Those who have seen this film will know what I am writing about. I expect anything and everything from a Miike film. So it did not surprise me as much as it should have.
Still, this film is a far cry from some of his more serious yakuza films that I have enjoyed. The films narrative begins quite impressive actually. With the excellent soundtrack of rock blasting away as the film opens up, the viewer is witness to a cluster of mob hits. For the first ten minutes or so of the film, I actually liked it. [Not to mention the strange hit on the guy eating noodles]. However, things began to go downhill from there for me. Maybe I'm just a bit too picky about my yakuza films. Anyway, Ryuichi (Riki Takeuchi) is the main culprit behind these attacks. He is Japanese, however, he was born in China. And in Japanese society this means he is lower down the hierarchy than other Japanese and is in a sense, is a second-class citizen [As a sidenote: The legendary Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune was born and raised in China, and did not step foot in Japan until he was nearly 21 years old---after being drafted into the Japanese Air Force in WWII]. Since Ryuichi has nothing to lose [other than his life] he wages war against anyone: Chinese or Japanese. With the drug war waging in Yokohama between the Chinese triads and the Japanese yakuza, he feels he can offset both sides when he discovers they are in the process of forging a partnership together, and thus excluding everyone from their turf.
However, this is not going to be as easy as he thinks. Hot on his trail is the Japanese detective Jojima (Sho Aikawa). And if any of you viewers have not seen the film "RAINY DOG" by Miike, and starring Sho Aikawa, I highly recommend the film. The part of this film which was really weird for me [and there are plenty] deals with actor Renji Ishibashi who is a regular of Miikes' films. The part dealing with a woman and excrement, well that was downright weird. But I digress, after all, this is a Miike film, and in this film world of his anything goes. However, I still think that was just a very weird scene. Anyway, the film never captured me after the beginning of the film. The interaction between Detective Jojima and the gangster Ryuichi seesaws into a struggle of who will vanquish the other first. Moreover, when these two finally clash in the grand finale the viewer is in for one strange and surreal send off. I actually still laugh from the films ending no matter how times I see it. It is just too bizarre to describe. Furthermore, I do not wish to ruin it for those who have not seen it. I recommend the film with caution. This is not a particular favorite of mine, but it may appeal to others. |
|
Dead or Alive (R-Rated Edition) dvd movie.