Dororo
Label: MVM
Release date: 7th September 2009
Certificate: 15
Discs: 1.
Running time: 133 minutes
Video: 16.9 anamorphic
Sound: Japanese Dolby 5.1, Japanese DTS 5.1
Subtitles: English.
RRP: £15.99
Brief synopsis:
Based on the classic late 60’s manga and anime created by Osamu Tezuka, the genius storyteller behind some of Japan’s best-loved tales, and taking the Japanese movie charts by storm by claimed their number one spot for a unprecedented six weeks, Dororo is a energetic blend of martial-arts action drama and tragicomedy with stunning choreography and stunt work heavily reminiscent of House of Flying Daggers and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Monkey.
In an ancient land, a samurai warlord on the verge of losing his lands, his clan and even his very life in one last futile battle makes a desperate pact with a group of demons. Each of the forty eight demons will be gifted with a body part from his first born son and in return he will be granted the power to conquer the world. The deal is done and the warlord is victorious, sweeping through his enemies with his demonic powers and establishing himself a mighty empire over which to reign. When his wife later bears him a son the demons extract their price but rather than being put to death, the crippled newborn is cast adrift upon a mighty river and left to his fate. But the fates are smiling on him and he is rescued by a shaman who, through the art of his powerful medicines and his knowledge of forbidden magic, crafts for him prosthetic body parts and raises him as his own son.
As we all know, time waits for no-one and as the young boy becomes a man he realises that he must hunt down and defeat the demons and reclaim the body parts that are rightfully his if he is ever to regain his own humanity. To help him in this endeavour he has a powerful sword which is embedded in his fake left arm that was specially forged to kill demons as well as a body containing forty eight man-made parts which can regenerate themselves almost instantly, but with the enemies he has to face this may not be enough to keep him alive. Joined along the way by a tough young street thief intent on claiming his demon slaying sword for herself, he journeys the land to reclaim not just his missing body parts but also his true heritage and the truth behind his childhood abandonment.
Comments:
Every now and again I get a DVD come across my desk that, even though it’s not an anime, just cries out for me to review it anyway. In this instance I’m going to use the fact that this movie is based upon a manga created by the man many refer to as “the god of manga” as my excuse and to be honest, If that’s not a good enough reason then I don’t know what is. That said, you don’t need to know much about the back-story or to have read the original manga, as everything you need to know is included. It would probably help to know a bit about Japanese mythology and their plethora of supernatural beings but it’s not at all essential to your enjoyment. Dororo is basically a fun and entertaining fantasy romp, which has been touted by some as a kind of Edward Scissorhands meets Pinocchio… with samurai… and demons. The action’s engaging, the characters are likeable and the actors are all interesting to watch.
Starring Satoshi Tsumabuki (who’s probably best known in the English speaking world for his role in The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift) as our hero “Hyakkimaru”. Also starring is Kou Shibasaki (who’ll be best known for her role in Battle Royale) as a young street thief “Dororo” who joins Hyakkimaru on his journey. Confusingly Dororo isn’t the main character, this honour falls to Hyakkimaru, but early in the story she steals his name and he’s more than happy to let her keep it. Those who’ve seen a number of other recent Japanese movies, such as Memories Of Matsuko or Sakuran, will easily recognise two of the co-stars, these being Eita and Anna Tsuchiya. Eita alone seems to have been in at least 25% of Japan’s TV dramas for the last few years and if you don’t recognise his face straight away then you’ll surely recognise his ears. But don’t let the pretty faces fool you as none of these actors were chosen just on their looks alone (though they surely helped) as they’re all lauded and respected actors in their native Japan and unlike many of their American contemporaries they actually know how to act.
Visually it’s very impressive. Plenty of thought and planning has gone into the action scenes which were handled by respected Hong Kong action choreographer Siu-Tung Ching who previously worked on House of Flying Daggers and Hero, so if you’ve already seen these two movies then you know what to expect here. Much thought has also gone into the design and presentation of the various demons and monsters, most of which are realised with CGI impressive enough to put a number of Hollywood blockbusters to shame. Filmed mainly in New Zealand Dororo really makes the best of it’s location. This isn’t the New Zealand we’ve seen previously in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy or episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess. Instead the plains are barren, stark and windswept; the forests dark and imposing and the towns mucky, dank and muddy. While the landscapes and shooting style easily brings over a real fantasy world feeling, it’s much more akin to the worlds of the Brothers Grimm than that of Rainbow Brite.
If I had to bitch about something, and I generally do, then I’d have to mention that the only thing that lets this film down are the rather flaky subtitles. These really could have done with being run through the spell checker a few more times before being finalised but luckily they’re not jarring enough to mar an otherwise very enjoyable movie.
Extras:
A half hour “making of” featurette, photo gallery, trailers, deleted scenes.
Dororo will be available on DVD from 7th September 2009 from most high streets as well as online retailers such as http://www.play.com/DVD/DVD/4-/10137127/Dororo/Product.html” target=”_blank”>Play.
Reviewer: Penfold