6.7 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.7 |
When a master samurai arrives to duel the disgraced Yoshioka dojo, he walks into an ambush. In the world's first 77-minute, one-take action film sequence, Miyamoto Musashi (Tak Sakaguchi) fights for his life against 400 warriors, earning a place in history as the CRAZY SAMURAI MUSASHI.
Starring: Tak Sakaguchi, Kento Yamazaki, Yôsuke Saitô, Ben Hiura, Arata YamanakaForeign | 100% |
Action | 32% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Japanese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Japanese: Dolby Digital 2.0
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Like the takes themselves, the list of “one shot films” (i.e., no edits, either actually, or in appearance) is getting longer. There are whole corners of the internet devoted to this particular phenomenon, many of them focusing on now legendary movies like Alfred Hitchcock’s Rope (which fans will of course know really wasn’t shot in just one take, but was edited to appear like it was), and moving on to a host of international offerings like Béla Tarr’s version of Macbeth, Mike Figgis’ exploration of the virtues of digital cinematography, Timecode, the fascinating documentary from Alexander Sokurov, Russian Ark, as well as other “pretenders” (in terms of really being done in one continuous take) like the relatively recent Birdman and 1917. For those who want their cinematic wonderment to revolve around an evidently real life 16th to 17th century Japanese swordsman named Miyamoto Musashi, Crazy Samurai: 400 vs. 1 will probably fit the bill quite nicely, though that said, this is a film that is all about the cinematic wonderment of “one continuous take” rather than any other niggling elements like plot, characterization or narrative coherence.
Crazy Samurai: 400 vs 1 is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. I haven't been able to find any authoritative technical data on the shoot, but as usual I am assuming that this apparent digital capture was finished at a 2K DI. There are some odd looking moments here, notably in the brief opening vignette, where things can look pretty seriously noisy (see screenshot 19), but even throughout the presentation, which boasts substantially better clarity than the opening scene, things look rather harshly digital at times, as if sharpened (I'm not saying there's any tweaking involved, simply that it can look that way). The prevalence of blue tones both in the production design and also with regard to hints of grading can also give the entire presentation a slightly artificial, even alien, appearance. All of this said, detail levels are often quite appealing, though the peripatetic camera moves may make them hard to spot at times. Frequent close-ups do offer good, precise looks at things like hair and the texture of fabrics.
Crazy Samurai: 400 vs. 1 features a bombastic DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. This is the second Japanese film in a row I've reviewed (after Shogun's Joy of Torture) which features a battery of percussion instruments providing a lot of the "underscore", and the thundering drums resonate with nice clarity and at times spectacular force. The outdoor environments also offer good opportunity for realistic placement of ambient environmental sounds. The clash of metals with regard to sword mixed with "gooier" sounds of flesh being mangled also offer a glut of surround activity. Dialogue is really relatively sporadic throughout the film, but is delivered cleanly and clearly when it is delivered. Optional English subtitles are available.
As an exercise in cinematic stagecraft, there's no doubt that Crazy Samurai: 400 vs. 1 is going to be of interest to all sorts of people who pay attention to things like framings, edits and generally "how did they do that" aspects to filmmaking. As a story, there's next to nothing in Crazy Samurai: 400 vs. 1 to really latch on to, despite what look like "afterthoughts" in terms of some bookending framing moments. This seems like perhaps an unwise decision, given how seemingly fascinating Musashi's real life and battle skills evidently were. The action here is often amazing, if ultimately probably unavoidably repetitive, and fans of Sakaguchi in particular may want to check this one out in any case. Video is occasionally problematic, but audio is great, for those who are considering a purchase.
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