Lena レナ Stuart

(2013-06-13 20:56:37)

Bunraku is Visually Stunning and Gackt is Amazing

I went to the premier in Toronto Canada I am a HUGE Gackt Fan so thismovie has been on the top of my list for awhile nowBunraku (spoiler)This Movie is very Surreal.Gackt (World Famous Mega Jrocker) making his big screen movie debut,does speak some Japanese in it but mainly English and it sounds a bitforced but very understandable and well done. The plot line is a bitthin its your classic western tale of a drifter (Josh Hartnett) out tobattle the evil overlord Nicola (Ron Perlman) but with an Easternflair. On the way THE DRIFTER teams up with Yoshi (Gackt) who is out toreclaim his family's honor after Nicola's henchmen destroy his unclesJapanese Restaurant and steal his fathers amulet; with the help of awise yet kooky barkeep (Woody Harrelson) they eventually take him out.Now I understand why this film took so long to be released; with loadsof visual effects crew this film delivers a stunning picture. Itsrefreshing to see actual theatrics combined with computer graphics. Thescenes change so fast they make your head spin and are reminiscent ofTim Burton as in its really something not seen before or rarely seen intoday's movies. It also sports a comic book feel there are pop-upcaptions whenever Japanese is spoken and you can't help but expect aZING, BOW whenever a fight brakes out. and speaking of which the fightscenes were amazing and very well choreographed I read in an interviewwith TIFF that Gackt insisted on doing his own stunts and was evenknocked out and taken to the hospital and that is just the kind of guyhe is never doing anything Halfway."The title is amazingly appropriate too, because it's like a mad-capcircus' dark puppet show, all the character's are gathered &manipulated by Destiny's strings, just like the audience is pulledalong by a thread"~LeiaI would find this movie very interesting even if I had no idea whoGackt was and I can't wait when it is released so I can see it againand again and I hope everyone that looks at this will too-Lena

chris dimarino

(2013-06-13 10:21:00)

Very Unique Action Stereotype

Bunraku was a good movie. It was very fresh and different. It had someissues with pace and execution. This is an action movie and features alot of fighting. A lot of the sequences are very well done if not overthe top. This is not a movie that considers physics even though itmakes no effort to explain how certain moves make sense. There isn'ttoo much story, but enough to keep you on tap with why the charactersare doing what they are (for the most part).The action was well done. There a couple of interesting fighting stylesand the big achievement was combining a brawl type of fighting withmartial arts. The actors were not required to act too often, but WoodyHarrelson did a good job. I felt Ron Perlman was perfect for his rolebut felt a little to lazy. Josh Hartnett has proved he can act butwasn't asked to in this movie. That is not to take away from thephysical requirements of this movie which were tall.The story felt underdone even with a narrative. At certain times I hadnot idea why things were happening and was not really enlightened for awhile. There was no sweet payoff, but the ride was sufficient enough.I'm not even sure why Demi Moore was in this movie, she had a tinypart. The interesting idea of mixing the music with action was cool butgimmicky.I would recommend this movie to anyone who wants to see an actionmovie.

kosmasp

(2013-06-12 02:17:01)

Stunning images

If not anything else, this movie looks really amazing. You may feelthat it drops the ball on almost every other occasion (though I wouldslightly disagree with that statement), but you can't fault the moviefor its cinematography. It's superb, with all the color schemes andframing, that you wish the other departments (minus set design that is)were up to par. The cast is good (with Demi Moore having one of herbetter roles in recent years, still a short one though) and Josh Brolintries his best as the leading man.While he almost succeeds (or maybe he even does completely succeed inyour eyes), the stellar Woody Harrelson could've had a bit more screentime too. The action is nicely filmed, though it isn't anything thatwill make your jaw drop to the floor kind of stuff. Enjoy a "B-movie"that looks more expansive than it probably was.

Ciberbakuz

(2013-06-12 01:17:10)

Great movie!

I really can't understand why those bad reviews about this movie, thiswas a great entertainment, never been bored for 2 hours. This couldjust have been directed by Tarantino, nobody would have noticed andeveryone would loved it. The story is imaginative, i mean this is notjust the story of a a young man who has spent his life searching forrevenge like stated in the plot line. (i will not spoil but thebeginning says it all). Also the acting is great, every role iscarefully, naturally and so damn well interpreted. Demi Moore was a bitunlucky about that not very interesting character, and in my humbleopinion like stated before kind of a waste of Demi's talent. Anyway iwould even say theatrical, with Kevin McKidd's performance. If i couldchoose a mix of films to describe this one i would say: Sin City + KillBill + A Clockwork Orange + Dark City ...all with a nice perfume of oldjapan vs wide west western.8/10

nolan-anthony2

(2013-06-10 01:18:27)

A Kick Ass Kick-Fest of a Movie

The last movie I gave 7 out of ten was Sin City. This is even moreabstract than the brilliant former but it is just as good a flick. Thesets are obviously from a kind of West End show than a movie but itworks. The plot is quite good and the acting is superb.I normally don't go for martial arts kind of flicks but this one blendsEastern Martial Arts with Western Plot so seamlessly that one barelynotices.Overall a flick that is well worth a watch - But remember, disengageyour brain, you reality and everything you have come to expect fromfilms. This Genre is - Abstract. I love it.

white_fire4

(2013-06-09 14:36:31)

Overly artsy and overly boring

I don't mind films that try to be artistic or stylish in one way oranother, it can be interesting.Having sets look like they're made out of paper and taken straight froma 4 year olds drawing is not artistic. Lighting everything in varioushues from blue to green to red to yellow and blah blah blah is notartistic, it's lazy.Here's the basic plot....world blew itself up, humans decided theyshould ban guns....why guns only, I don't know, since the movieestablishes that we basically nuked ourselves near to extinction, butHEY. So this is post apocalyptic.1 man, Drifter, and another Japanese man, Yoshi (yes, seriously) bothare after a man named Nicola, who, as we are CONSTANTLY reminded, isthe strongest man east of the Atlantic. And by constant, I mean atleast every 15-20 minutes.Drifter wants to kill him for reasons that are never reallyexplained...at all. Yoshi wants back a medallion that Nicola stole fromhis clan. Yup.In a SERIOUSLY dragged out first half, Drifter and Yoshi come to crosspaths with The Bartender (yes, seriously again) and then each other.Drifter eventually "borrows" 48,000 dollars from Yoshi to enter a pokergame, in order to challenge Nicola to....another poker game. To drawhim out into public, as he never goes out (the movie claims nobodyknows what he looks like, but of course, WE are shown his face manytimes over) In doing this, Yoshi gets caught up and gets his Unclekilled and his cousin kidnapped, they both go after Nicola for evenmore reasons, blah blah blah. All of this takes an hour and a half toestablish and get out there. 90 minutes!!! During this, there arepoorly choreographed fight scenes, which establish a few things.....inthis post apocalyptic world, anyone can challenge who rules if theyhave at least 20 men and can win in the challenge. Nicola usually onlysends 1 of 9 "killers" he keeps as his personal guard basically,although we don't really see any of the others except for very briefshots. Killer #2 (....noticing the lack of actual names with anyone butNicola?) is the only one really fleshed out to any degree as acharacter.People use old time technology....VERY old time. As in, 40's stylephones, morse code machines, and people drive around in what areessentially clown cars. And since there's no guns, everyone fights withknives/swords, and just sheaths or pieces of wood they find lyingaround.Yet everyone has overly fancy clothing.IF you're willing to sit through a lot, a LOT of unnecessary narration(such as pointing out that men in red enter a room...when they'reentering the room....not kidding) and conversation that is meant to bedeep and philosophical yet is just boring and ultimately pointless, themovie does have a few interesting points (the poker game is intriguing)and some slightly decent fight scenes....emphasis on slightly.But the story is basically non existent. The reason for everythinghappening is very simple, very boring, and takes just over two hours totell. It's basically taking the plot of a Final Destination movie andtrying to stretch it out for another 45 minutes.

ryoen_lee

(2013-06-08 11:44:49)

Nice visuals and atmosphere

First of all, i didn't know what to expect of this movie. It's such astrange title...The visuals (in this movie the most important thing) It's is awonderful visual experience. Mix of decors, voice-over, action-scenes,style. The style is a mix of cartoon and Sin City, also remind me alittle to Kill Bill. It was a pleasant surprise to see a movie likethis. It's more like a live-action anime movie. The backgrounds arewonderful, all made from paper with gorgeous soft lighting behind it.Personally, i love that.The movie could be more exciting, fighting scenes are not bad, but i'veseen better. The end is very predictable. Harnett played his role well,but Geckt was not so good. McKidd played it very well (number 2).So if you are looking for a movie with nice visuals, i bet this one isfor you...

cinemacocoa

(2013-06-07 12:57:55)

Unearthing little gems like these from obscurity always makes me feel good!

Bunraku tells of a future where guns no longer exist after terriblewars nearly destroyed the world, but of course now battles are foughtwith swords. A lone drifter, a barman and a young samurai findthemselves joining forces to take down a tyrant and his band of nineassassins. What is most arresting about Bunraku is its visual style,east-meets- west, bright contrasting colours and an origami, paper andpop-up book theme runs throughout. It has more than just a comic, mangafeel about it, and I was immediately drawn to it.It is heavy with violent action sequences, reminding me of Kung FuHustle a little, and while some of the choreography is simplistic, theHollywood stars involved do not look out of place doing it. Thedirection is strong and the settings for various battles are unique toeach other; a prison break that reminded me of Old Boy's corridorfight, and a fist fight on a springy trapeze safety net! Yes, there isa satirical edge throughout the film.A surprisingly star-studded cast leads this unique experience: JoshHartnett, Woody Harrelson, Ron Perlman and Demi Moore, and while theirroles are very straightforward (Moore has very little screen time) theygive more than enough to be convincing. Scottish actor Kevin McKidd asthe vicious Killer No.2 was both amusing and impressively dark. I thinkmy one gripe was the soundtrack, while it was present and (from what Icould tell) sounded great, it wasn't loud or bombastic enough to fitwith the bright, contrasting imagery, it didn't shake me and felt alittle underused.However, this film was a great little gem! It goes up there with otherunderrated favourites of mine such as Franklyn. Its simplicity mightnot be for everyone, but its a fascinating action film to watch,constructed with an artistic vision.

funeralfortheliving

(2013-05-31 00:30:23)

Moulin Rouge 2 electric boogaloo

Where do I start...Bad acting, horrible script, white belt karatespliced together with better pop up footage. Did Godfrey Ho make this?Imagine the Warriors if they cut their hair, and traded their toughgear for Dick Tracy suits and were a Bunch of wimps and it was filmedin France and you have this pile of steaming hack. Imagine watchingwest side story and the sharks and the jets trying their hardest tomake dancing around with no talent look like action and then someeditor tried his hardest to use flashy cuts and pop up bookintermissions to make up for the dry nonsensical plot and you wouldhave a tiny clue of the mess that is Bunraku.The dialog never makes you say ah ha except one line at the end and bythen I stopped caring! The characters are mumble jumbled together so asto never let any of them shine. None of the back stories add anythingto the heart of the movie (oh it has no heart)or emotion. Like othershave pointed out the fight scenes are sad, sad, sad, boy go watch Cityof Violence or Invisible Target then watch this and weep!!! But foranyone claiming it isn't that bad can anyone of you explain to me howsomeone who loves movies and from every genre and country could havewanted to gouge my eye's out by about 30 minutes in after I realizedthe flashy cinematography was trying to cover a terrible script with nohumor, no wit and none of the sets or cool pop up tricks in the background ever added to the story, except for the lame the sun came up andturned into a clock at sun up oohh what a master of the archetypal! Ohand then out of no where a medallion that never gets an explanation?Japanese film makers have the power of story telling and the skill ofdirecting and they have really tight actors this film tries to beJapanese and misses every mark. If Quentin Tarantino Directed this hewould be found dead in his hotel room from suicide after seeing thepremier. Take that back there was no directing so he would have had tokill himself in pre production.This should have been called Moulin Rouge 2 electric boogaloo and theyshould have dropped the three main characters for Scott Pilgrim and thesuper bad geeks. Poor Shun Sugata whose been in the best Japanesemovies like Organ, Marebito, Izo and Ichi and goes from kill bill toScott Pilgram vs Godfrey-Ho this movie sucks the fights are lame thecolors suck the costumes blow the acting is dry and emotionlesscharacters and plots keep manifesting but never amount to anything?This director never need attempt to try any sort of make a motion typething again!!! PS flashy cinematography doesn't equal good film that'sproduction visualization 101 the cinematographers and editor wereexcellent and deserve all the credit for this film period the directorshould have been replaced and the script should have been used by craftservices and handed out for kids to color on while they wait for theirfood.

shepherdcrane-271-18299

(2013-05-30 17:20:06)

cinema in service of drama

this movie is cinema in service of drama. I was again and againsurprised and delighted by the sets, and effects, and all of it was inservice of the story. I have never seen a movie quite like this one. Nowonder it is not better advertised.The characters are standard, what movie these days cannot have standardcharacters. Perhaps we have reached the stage of other great theatersin history where we no longer require originality in the story. We canappreciate originality in the presentation, the point of view, thenuances of interaction and emphasis. What other movies are integrating origami, animation, live footage andcharacters that you actually care about - both villains and heroes.

Hellmant

(2013-05-30 16:16:23)

The film is a mess and sometimes painful to watch, despite it's seemingly fun nature.

'BUNRAKU': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five) Ambitious fantasy martial-arts action film from writer/director GuyMoshe (based on a story by B movie vet Boaz Davidson). The title is astyle of Japanese puppet theater that's been around for over 400 yearsand refers to the film's odd visual style, which also greatly seemsinfluenced by films like 'SIN CITY'. It's sort of a martial-artswestern set in a world where guns have been outlawed and criminals usedifferent swords and knives to rule the land. It stars Josh Hartnet asa Clint Eastwood type drifter who drifts through town bent on revenge.It also stars the likes of Woody Harrelson, Demi Moore, Ron Perlman,Kevin McKidd and popular Japanese singer Gackt in his American filmdebut. Despite all the talent attached and (what appears to be) thebest of intentions from the filmmakers the film is a mess and sometimespainful to watch, despite it's seemingly fun nature.The film is set in the wake of a global war which resulted in theoutlawing of guns. Towns are now ran by crime lords using sharp blades.Perlman plays one such crime boss known as Nicola the Woodcutter. Herules all nearby land with the help of nine assassins and hisright-hand man 'Killer No. 2' (McKidd). Hartnet plays a drifter whowanders into town (known only as 'The Drifter') wanting to kill Nicola.He joins forces with the bartender of a local saloon (Woody Harrelson)and a samurai named Yoshi (Gackt), who wants to avenge the death of hisfather by regaining possession of a talisman Nicola stole from hispeople. Moore plays Nicola's twisted girlfriend.The movie is even more silly than it sounds. I usually enjoy cheesy butcreative B action films like this but I just couldn't get into thisone. I really didn't care for the look of the film (found it prettyboring) and I never felt for any of the characters or became involvedin any of their dilemmas. Despite all the stars none of the actors gavevery decent performances and the directing just didn't work in myopinion either. Moshe's last film ('HOLLY') was a well liked indiedarling and helped attract some of the big names to this film but herehe must have suffered the sophomore jinx. I admire the film's effortand attempts at creating something unique and cool but it just didn'twork for me.Watch our review show 'MOVIE TALK' at:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_lBzdmfUfA

faithhopeamour

(2013-05-30 02:13:56)

Sin City + Clockwork Orange + Warriors + Oragami = BUNRAKU

This movie had my attention the moment it started. It's unique visualartistry, shadowing, narration and the excellent cast (as well as thestory itself) kept my eyes glued to the screen wanting more and waitingeagerly in anticipation for another fight sequence.There are scenes in this movie that leave you in awe with itsone-of-a-kind artistic and imaginative filming techniques. **If youlike how Sin City was filmed, then you'll really enjoy the likes ofBunraku.I rated this 8 out of 10 because although I truly enjoyed it, therewere some parts of the story-line I thought could've been better. Thatbeing said: This was definitely worth my 2 hours and its a keeper!

SnakesOnAnAfricanPlain

(2013-05-27 16:56:21)

Bunraku (2010)

Films like this really need to manage their style and substance. JoshHartnett plays a lone stranger in a world where guns have becomeoutlawed. He is joined by lone swordsman, and the two form a friendshipwith a bartender. They each have their own gripes with the mysteriousleader of the town, who is protected by a group of assassins. Bunrakustarts off really cool, and the visuals continue to impress throughout.It takes on forms of puppetry at times, and also uses the aesthetics ofa pop-up book for its transitions. The wonderfully constructed setshide the limited budget and the action scenes are competentlychoreographed. All this said though, it is certainly reminiscent ofevery western ever made. By paying too much homage, the twists andturns become apparent early on. An exciting and fun film, but whensomething looks this good, you wish it try a little harder.

bowlesizhit

(2013-05-27 03:28:32)

A true Comic Book - For those who love COMICS

I understand the reviews of this movie - especially the dislikes anddisgusts; however, for a comic book fan this is the perfect movie. Thedirector truly captured the comic book feel, the simple yet complexcomic book character, and the pacing of a comic book. 1) The movie's visuals were exactly the same as a comic book. Thebackdrops, the colors and the movements of the camera pinpointed thesame art direction that goes into a comic book. It was not the artdirection or camera movements of a motion picture. It was a comic bookin the medium of film. It was amazing to see, and it was expertly done.I would recommend this movie to comic fans around the world on thismerit alone. 2) The characters were well written for a comic book. In a quicksummary, a comic book character's depth comes from his/her honorable,or kick-a$$ actions, his/her looks and his/her posture. Josh, Ron,Kevin and Gackt captured this style expertly. Again the characters drawtheir depth not from their lines or from only the written story. Infact, a well written comic is great, but a well written comic buildsmystery, coolness, and the unknown is less words and more visuals. In asense, this movie understood how a true comic book character builds itsdepth and character by posture, looks, style. I think this movie andits actors did an impressive job of being comic characters that move.3)The pacing was great. The movie moved through each page (I say pagebecause this was a true comic book through the medium of film) withexpertise and precision. I truly felt like I was visually reading. Idon't think the critics understand comic books at all. They onlyunderstand film. The mixing of the two was simply too complicated forthem to grasp.Complaints- Demi Moore was simply awful. I do agree that her scenesdragged simply because she could not carry them. She acted instead ofcreating a comic book character. Woody delivered some of his linesrather poorly and looked to be calling it in.I also felt that the movie was a bit too short. I could have read(watched) a few more volumes. Excellent job overall.

thijs_de_beste

(2013-05-26 23:04:12)

Good, not the best

After seeing the relatively low rating on this movie I decided to justgive it a go without expecting too much.Boy was I wrong! One of the most compelling intros I've seen this year,with humor, fast paced storytelling and very, very stylishly done,what's not to like? Well: the story is fast but not so much original.The action is good but didn't quite blow me off my chair. WoodyHarrelson is fun, but this role seems to be typecast for him, don'texpect too much out of the ordinary. Harnett pretty much copies therole he had in Lucky number Slevin. Gackt makes his debut I think anddoes so convincingly.Should you see this movie? Yes! It's beautifully made, switches visualstyles, languages and mood a lot and does so convincingly. Just don'texpect to many surprises from the writing department. 8/10

Tony Heck

(2013-05-26 11:17:10)

A very entertaining, exciting and surprisingly good movie with a great cast. Fans of "Sin CIty" will love it. I liked it. I say B

"Revenge is an act of style." When a man (Hartnett) bent on revengecome to a city he finds what he is looking for. He begins fighting hisway through nine very different and very deadly assassins on his way tothe one he want. This is another movie that really surprised me as tohow good it was. Having never seen a preview or even really heard aboutit I had no idea what to expect. While the movie is not that originalit takes from many different types of movies and blends them togetherin a very interesting and exciting way. Some aspects have been takenfrom "Scott Pilgrim vs The World", "Kill Bill" and "Sin City" just toname a few. This is more like "Sin City" then the others in the stylethat it uses and the "comic-booky" feel that it has. The fighting isgreat, and is refreshing to see an action movie that doesn't rely onguns to make it fun. The cast is great and the movie is very fun, verymuch worth your time. The only thing that bothered me is that it didn'tneed to be two hours long. They could have cut at least 15-20 min outand had it move at a more exciting pace. Other then that I reallyenjoyed this. Overall, a very entertaining way to spend your time andmoney. I give it a B.Would I watch again? - I don't think so *Also try - Sin City & Tekken

equazcion

(2013-05-25 15:13:33)

An experiment

Bunraku is as difficult to describe as it is to pronounce. At its heartis a rather simple story of hero-strangers who roll into an oppressedtown to start trouble with the oppressors. That familiar plot line ispresented as an experimental piece of performance art that keeps youguessing as to whether or not the story will go quite as you'reexpecting.If I had to describe Bunraku's presentation, I'd have to liken it to alife-size pop-up comic book being read stylishly aloud on a live stage,though with the freedom of motion and effects afforded by the medium offilm.Bunraku's story seems to merely be a vessel to deliver the style andwritten nuggets the filmmaker seems much more eager to get off hischest. There isn't much depth of character beyond the pop-up cutoutsimmediately evident, but there are those bits of dialog and narrationthat resonate with some philosophical wisdom you might find in aninterpretation of a myth or legend.Assuming you get used to the style, don't mind the intentionallyshallow story, and don't feel the need to use the word "pretentious"that the combination of those two things plus a new filmmaker mightnormally conjure, you won't find much to hate about Bunraku. You'll bereasonably entertained by the constant action and colorful motion, andaside from some occasionally imperfect fight choreography, this is awell-made film.

dukevega

(2013-05-24 16:16:06)

Someone Needs To Call The ClichГѓВ© Police

This movie has earned a place of honor in my lists of movies. It did tome what no other movie has done in over 20 years: it made me not finishit. I have seen plenty of bad movies (Avatar, Order, Practical Magic)but with those I was at least able to sit through them in theirentirety (I think I deserve an award for sitting through "Avatar", butthat's just me). This one I couldn't.Set in a post-apocalyptic world where guns are banned, Drifter (is thathis name or were the writers just unable to think of one?) andnon-violent samurai Yoshi (yeah, wrap your head around that one, butdon't worry, his vow lasts less than 5 minutes) show up in a town runby a crime boss named Nicola (Ron Perlman, looking like he wandered infrom one of those Geico caveman commercials), but for what reason Idon't know. As far as I can tell, Drifter is just looking for a game ofcards (which is also banned) and Yoshi is on a mission from his fatherto get…something.The supporting cast is just as boring. There's also Woody Harrelson asThe Bartender (an odd name, "The"; did his parents hate him or werethey just lazy?), the one local willing to help them, although it's inthe form of cryptic riddles and pop-up books. There's a girl involvedas well, Nicola's beautiful but unwilling girlfriend (she joined him tosave her true love's life; I have an idea who the true love is, but Ididn't stick around to find out. I wonder if they get back together?).Enough, enough, ENOUGH ALREADY! I'M CALLING THE CLICHÉ POLICE!I'm wondering if the writers purposely set out to throw every actionmovie cliché they could think of into this and then really REALLY hopedtheir paper-maiche sets would somehow distract us. Would it have killedthem to give us characters who weren't as thin as the paper they usedfor their sets? Give me something, ANYTHING to make me care about anyof the people in this, is that too much to ask? For the makers of thisfilm, it clearly was.

lanosiceland

(2013-05-24 09:50:04)

A great disappointment

All the elements/potential of a great movie: stars, good story, action.However, the execution is so bad that most people will torturethemselves to get through this: took me three days... and I regrettedit. The Sin City a la surrealism concept did not work. Bloody awful.120min of good money badly spent. The blue-print for 'how not to.' Icannot recommend this. An utter and complete load of garbage; burnafter watching and forget as quickly as humanly possible. If you dodecide to chance it then expect nothing great and maybe you'll end upwith less disappointment... but I doubt it. Everything is wrong withthis. Check it out if you must: you'll only have yourself to blame.

meddlecore

(2013-05-23 19:45:20)

Badass Modern Ultraviolence.

Mortal Kombat meets The Warriors meets Clockwork Orange meets Kung FuHustle in this East meets West film.It's the future in "Little Westworld" (an ode to the amazing 1973 film)which is actually an "East-Meets-West-World", stylistically speaking.To prevent utter destruction by Men, guns have been outlawed andsociety has reverted to the sword....and, well... axes, hatchets, brassknuckles and extremely acrobatic Kung Fu. There is no longer anygovernment, Gangs rule an Ultraviolent Warrior Society where you mustKILL your way to the top. Little Westworld is controlled by Nicola theWoodcutter (Pearlman) and his Gang of Killers (of which there is ahierarchy of 10, himself being Killer #1). They keep order by havingtheir henchman- the Red Suits (led by Killer #2, played amazingly byKevin McKidd)- violently extort the general public, ruling by Fear.Enter our two lone wolf characters. The Man With No Name (Hartnett) andYoshi, the Jin Samurai (Gackt- who received more applause than all theother A-list actors at the TIFF Premiere). The Man is a vicious fighterknown for having the quickest hands in the west; whose strength andrage is exposed when he sniffs an unlit cigarette. He has no goals ordirection, he's just a drifter who wandered into town looking for agame of cards (gambling is banned by the way)- a lone man in a land ofultraviolent gangs. Yoshi is a young Samurai from the East who has beensent on "The Quest" by his father. His mission is to find and retrievea Dragon Amulet that represents great power for his family...and whilehe's at it...to become a man.Seeking information, both men end up in a small bar (with a sort ofwestern/clockwork orange theme), of which is tended by Woody Harrelson-The Bartender, who has a knack for making Pop-Up books. After eachindividually beats down the biker gang that frequents the bar, theirpaths cross and the two lone wolves turn eyes toward each other. To gettheir issues with each other out of the way, The Bartender agrees tomoderate an epic atmospheric battle where the two warriorsstylistically beat the sh*t out of each other. (fight scene was a bitdrawn out for my taste) The plot develops as The Man is able to gain access to Nicola's weeklypoker game. Nicola plays in costume via video link, and despite beingcheated, The Man is able to knock out all the other players and obtaina significant chip advantage. Angered, Nicola demands to end the gameface to face...if The Man can continue to "beat the odds", that is...Subsequently, Yoshi's Uncle- who runs a sushi restaurant- is beingharassed by the Red Suits, and Yoshi's intervention puts him at oddswith Killer #2. Things happen, battles ensue, people die, and our twolone wolves realize that they have a common enemy and, thus, couldbenefit from each others' friendship.During the poker game, The Man realizes that Nicola has the Amulet thatYoshi seeks. The Man, on the other hand, simply wishes to end the gamehe started earlier. Throw The Bartender into the mix- as Nicola endedhis Warrior career and be-whored the love of his life, Alexandra (DemiMoore)- along with the soldiers of the Proletariat Peasant Uprising-who seek to overthrow Nicola's violent and oppressive rule (theirleader looks like Castro!)- and you have a force that is able to takeon even the Killers and their army of Red Suits.As the Peasants battle the Red Suits, our two warriors must slay theirway up the hierarchy in order to reach their ultimate matches, vsKiller #2 and Nicola himself. Will good triumph over evil in this epictale from the future? You'll have to watch it to find out, and trustme...you won't be disappointed.This is one of the most visually stunning and original films I've everseen. The opening animation (which gives us the back-story) uses CGIthat emulates paper cut-out stop motion in combination with Japanesestyle Bunraku origami puppeteers, and sets the stage for the aestheticatmosphere that will absorb the rest of the film. The backgroundscenery has an origami look and feel to it and, as the camera pans over"Little Westworld", the scenery "unfolds" as if it were popping up frompages opening in a pop-up book. Moshe cleverly plays with this ideawith The Bartender character. This has an absolutely amazing effect-I've never seen anything like it. It is definitely the atmosphere whichmakes this film so artistically incredible and visually consuming.Original, Engrossing Atmosphere, Mind Blowing Action, Wonderful Castingand Acting...all in all this is a pretty awesome film that CANNOT BEMISSED. A Cult Classic waiting to happen. 9 out 10.