Mister fell down stairs (Kikujiro (DVD))

Name: MykReeve

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Product:	Kikujiro (DVD)
Date:	07/08/00 (30 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A beautifully directed, extremely funny, well acted, moving story

Disadvantages: Maybe a little long, but nothing to complain about

"Beat" Takeshi Kitano's latest film, 'Kikujiro' is a comedy film, and arguably his best. He's best known in Japan for apperaring in comedy television shows, but over here, he's probably best known for his work on Yakuza-based drama films - such as 'Boiling Point' and 'Violent Cop'. He has directed and starred in one other comedy film, the insane 'Getting Any?', which is very rarely shown outside Japan.

In this film, Takeshi plays a hen-pecked husband, who reluctantly agrees to accompany a young boy on a quest to find the mother he's never met. It's a stunningly funny road movie, with the characters blowing all their money at the bicycle races, and being forced to thumb lifts across the country, or acquire a lift by less ethical means!

'Kikujiro' features Takeshi's trademark style of direction - generally showing the set-up to an action, then cutting to the aftermath, without showing the action itself. This works to great effect in his action films, and intuitively, you wouldn't think it would suit a comedy film. However, the direction in 'Kikujiro' is spot on - there are some superb moments such as when the camera cuts from Takeshi's character walking unsteadily along the side of a swimming pool, before cutting to a shot of him on a stretcher with a couple of lifeguards by the side of the pool.

Takeshi and the young Yusuke Sekiguchi, who plays the boy Masao, are both superbly good in the film, and it's obvious, from watching it, why Takeshi is much loved by the Japanese.

Also, the music is absolutely fantastic - Jo Hisaishi has produced a superb and moving soundtrack to accompany the story.

Sadly, the film only had a very limited release in the United Kingdom, so I doubt that many have had the opportunity to see it yet. Hopefully though, we won't have to wait too long for a video release.

Summary: