646f9e108c We begin in 1865, when the Shogunate is on its last legs, but still capable of punishing its enemies. One is Izo (Kazuya Nakayama), an assassin in the service of Hanpeida (Ryosuke Miki), a Tosa lord and Imperial supporter. After killing dozens of the Shogun's men, Izo is captured and crucified. Instead of being extinguished, his rage propels him through the space-time continuum to present-day Tokyo, where he finds himself one with the city's homeless. Here Izo transforms himself into a new, improved killing machine, his entire soul still enraged by his treatment in his past life. His response to the powers-that-be, whose predecessors put him to death, is the sword. An executed samurai takes an existential journey throughout time, space and eternity in search of bloody vengeance. Izo is a recently killed warrior who wanders through time and space killing everybody in his way to find "divine retribution", silly plot huh? Well need I to remind you that this is a Miike film so get comfort in the fact that this is just the tip of the iceberg. I read a lot of user reviews on different websites that were mostly negative, accusing Miike of being a hack and that he doesn't even know what he's doing, i don't blame those people since i think in the end it's their point of view but I think they are wrong about this movie, there's more to it than just what you see, it's full of symbolism especially religious symbolism, the opening for example finds our protagonist a Samurai called Izo being crucified and then stabbed in the chest with a spear just like what they did to Jesus only more Miikesque, then he is somehow reborn in the shape of an undead killing machine, believe me this film is ruthless Izo kills almost everyone in his way while he's on the look for the organization that created him which is a metaphor for god if i'm correct but it could also be the Devil because i went out from this film with three interpretations 1) Izo is looking to kill god because he felt that despite him carrying the sins of the world he died a painful brutal death so he felt betrayed. 2) Izo is looking to kill the devil because he felt that he is responsible for the sins of the world hence Izo's Death. 3) (spoiler alert) the pretty boy Izo confronts in the end is both God and the Devil. This is only my interpretation of the film and i'm sure there's more into it than just this. Miike is in top form in this film ( I always thought he's one of the best working directors working today even though he admitted that he hates his job I still think he's doing a marvelous job) there's some really breathtaking action sequences here which is a trademark in Miike films, but what interested me the most is the "Tableaux" shown through the film, there's some very beautiful and creative imagery that only a genius like Miike can cone up with. This is a very good effort from Miike, this is his most experimental film (he had his share of those) absurd but at the same time very deep and thought provoking, this is a true Cult Classic and a must see for movie buffs, I guess Sion Sono's Love Exposure was a response to Miike's Izo in away but you never know, some themes are represented in both films but Love Exposure had a beautiful love story while Izo is an in-humanistic work of art. OK, juts like others said, this movie is really hard to categorize or even to explain. But could this really be bad? When you first watch Izo, you really wander who's who and what is happening. Just relax and stay calm. It's kinda like going on a movie ride with Nietzsche and some LSD. Izo, to my sens, is a nihilist tale of a guy loosing is humanity has he goes against everything that makes humankind civilized. He slashes through religion, political powers and so on until nothing is left but himself. It's a philosophical essay drawn on a samurai flick background. If you're looking for something like "Lone wolf and Cub" or "Samurai Reincarnation", you're in for a disappointment. Even though the movie contains some great fighting scenes, they seemed to me more like a symbols, a way for Izo to scream is rage and is rebellion against humanity. Has the movie goes, you even see Izo loosing is facial trait to become more and more inhuman…a monster of some kind. Monster because he is leaving all social convention behind and refusing to submit himself to any kind of structure. No powers are legitimate to him, but is own free, untamed will. Has I said earlier, try to see it like a Nietzsche statement about how fake and hypocrite our whole society is. About how we live in a lie that we take for a fundamental truth and how easily it would all crumble if we only free our will and mind. Chronologicly, the movie is also hard to get at first. My opinion about the period jumping back and forth is simply a statement about how society is always structured the same way. Based on lies and power, human power. And only our eternal submission to those powers confers them the power to rule our body and mind. Izo takes all that away, casting humanity (even his) away for pure free untamed willpower. So if you sit for the Izo ride, make sure you bring an open mind and not your grand mother. This is one movie you won't forget, even if you hate the hell out of it…
Westneldoli Admin replied
372 weeks ago