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Death Trance
DVD/APPROX. 91 MINS/2005/JAPAN M15+
DVD/APPROX. 91 MINS/2005/JAPAN M15+
8
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I have always loved Asian films. When I was a kid I grew up on a diet of Kraft Mac and Cheese, Astro Boy and Godzilla… which eventually
developed into the love of manga, sentai, anime, wushu and all that other stuff (including hentai). If you as a film lover, have not looked to the
Asian countries for some originality, you should do so immediately! Death Trance would be a great place to start.
Directed by Yuji Shimomura, who was the action director for such films as the horror hit Versus and Aragami, Death Trance tells the tale of Grave
(Tak Sakaguchi), a stranger who walks the forests dragging behind him a coffin that he stole from a monastery. His only companion is a mysterious
young girl (Honoko Asada), who seems to have some sort of attachment to the coffin. Grave's plight to escape the forest is made difficult by the
gangs of villains who wish to take the coffin from him, as the legends behind it are many and varied, but all offer a magical benefit to the one who
owns it. What Grave doesn't know, is that the coffins secret is more deadly than anyone could imagine...
Death Trance is like some kind of insane offspring of the Lone Wolf and Cub films and the Django films, with a little bit of the Final Fantasy
games thrown in for good measure. It really feels like a futuristic feudal Japanese western movie! This is one of those films where you just can't tell
what is going to happen next. It starts off like a feudal Japan flick, when all of a sudden someone pulls a gun, and then rides away on a
motorcycle. The story isn't exactly original, but the choreography of the fight scenes is great! On several occasions, the face punches looked like
they were connecting... hard! The director hasn't been happy to rest on the laurels of one fighting style either, which makes every fight scene
exciting and different.
Over and above the fight scenes though, this film is beautiful to watch, and the camera work is exquisite. Mainly the colors are kept quite muted,
so when blood does start to flow, it is vibrant, and out of place. No doubt the cinematographer on this film deserves credit for that!
In the extras there is The Making of Death Trance, which is a fairly brief (less than 10 minutes) look behind the scenes of the production of the film,
and an interview with star Tak Sakaguchi. There is also a slideshow featuring 38 stills from the film and several Madman trailers including Death
Trance, The Myth, Aragami and Rashomon.
Death Trance is a grand addition to the ever expanding range of titles from Madman Entertainment/Eastern Eye, and to put it bluntly, kicked my
ass. This film is not necessarily a movie that will make you think long and hard about the meaning of life but it will entertain you. Fans of fighting
Asian cinema should put this on their wish list immediately!
developed into the love of manga, sentai, anime, wushu and all that other stuff (including hentai). If you as a film lover, have not looked to the
Asian countries for some originality, you should do so immediately! Death Trance would be a great place to start.
Directed by Yuji Shimomura, who was the action director for such films as the horror hit Versus and Aragami, Death Trance tells the tale of Grave
(Tak Sakaguchi), a stranger who walks the forests dragging behind him a coffin that he stole from a monastery. His only companion is a mysterious
young girl (Honoko Asada), who seems to have some sort of attachment to the coffin. Grave's plight to escape the forest is made difficult by the
gangs of villains who wish to take the coffin from him, as the legends behind it are many and varied, but all offer a magical benefit to the one who
owns it. What Grave doesn't know, is that the coffins secret is more deadly than anyone could imagine...
Death Trance is like some kind of insane offspring of the Lone Wolf and Cub films and the Django films, with a little bit of the Final Fantasy
games thrown in for good measure. It really feels like a futuristic feudal Japanese western movie! This is one of those films where you just can't tell
what is going to happen next. It starts off like a feudal Japan flick, when all of a sudden someone pulls a gun, and then rides away on a
motorcycle. The story isn't exactly original, but the choreography of the fight scenes is great! On several occasions, the face punches looked like
they were connecting... hard! The director hasn't been happy to rest on the laurels of one fighting style either, which makes every fight scene
exciting and different.
Over and above the fight scenes though, this film is beautiful to watch, and the camera work is exquisite. Mainly the colors are kept quite muted,
so when blood does start to flow, it is vibrant, and out of place. No doubt the cinematographer on this film deserves credit for that!
In the extras there is The Making of Death Trance, which is a fairly brief (less than 10 minutes) look behind the scenes of the production of the film,
and an interview with star Tak Sakaguchi. There is also a slideshow featuring 38 stills from the film and several Madman trailers including Death
Trance, The Myth, Aragami and Rashomon.
Death Trance is a grand addition to the ever expanding range of titles from Madman Entertainment/Eastern Eye, and to put it bluntly, kicked my
ass. This film is not necessarily a movie that will make you think long and hard about the meaning of life but it will entertain you. Fans of fighting
Asian cinema should put this on their wish list immediately!
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