6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Unlike any other horror film you’ll see this year, DER SAMURAI is a German mind-bender about shape-shifting cross-dressers, bloody decapitations, repressed sexual desires and small town life. But while director Till Kleinert’s film is a surreal mix of dark comedy and eerie creep-out that recalls David Lynch. Jakob is a policeman in a village deep in the woods, where little happens until the arrival of a mysterious wolf that is causing havoc. Working the night shift, Jakob is tracking the wolf…only to discover that the lupine lurker is actually a man clad only in lipstick and a ladies’ slip, and toting a samurai sword that he uses to lop off the heads of the townspeople, including Jakob’s tormentors. Jakob and the transvestite samurai seem to share a bond, and as the night gets darker, events get even weirder. Completely bizarre yet wildly entertaining, DER SAMURAI is a horror must-see for the adventurous!
Starring: Michel Diercks, Pit Bukowski, Uwe Preuss, Ulrike Hanke-Haensch, Kaja BlachnikHorror | 100% |
Foreign | 80% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Fantasy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
German: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
German: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
feat. English commentary: Dolby Digital 2.0 (192kbps)
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Note: this is the uncensored version of DER SAMURAI that contains frontal male nudity and some excess gore.
In the advertising campaign and opening shot of Der Samurai, there is the image of a seemingly androgynous figure clad in a white dress
with long blond hair. Other photos from the marketing materials and trailer show this individual equipped with a samurai sword. I think that
director Till Kleinert and producer Linus de Paoli wanted to tease their target audience with the impression that the title character would be a
variation of Uma Thurman's The Bride from the Kill Bill films. In the German trailer for Der Samurai, the footage selected seems to
promise a splatter fest. Actually, Der Samurai restrains from featuring a high number of violent scenes compared to a Tarantino picture.
When the movie goes for a body count, it really delivers but the camera angles, subjective perspective of shots, and editing methods are heterodox
with the standard practices of contemporary Hollywood filmmaking.
Der Samurai is set in a small German village around Brandenburg where everyone seems to know everyone else and nothing earth-
shaking happens to the community. Jakob Wolski (Michel Diercks) is a taciturn police officer who lives with his sweet grandmother, who appears to
be suffering from dementia. Jakob receives a mysterious package in the mail at police headquarters that he brings home. He also receives a creepy
phone call from someone with a gravely voice requesting that he deliver the item to a derelict house in the woods. When Jakob knocks on the door
and no one answers, he bravely goes upstairs and discovers a tall skinny figure (Pit Bukowski) who he learns has trespassed. Jakob is surprised to
see that the person is a male cross-dresser who unsheathes a sword from the long box Jakob has brought. Jakob realizes that he is dealing with a
professional swordsman and flees the abandoned house. A playful and dangerous game of cat-and-mouse ensues between the young policeman
and The Samurai.
Who is that sitting in front of the dresser?
Artsploitation presents Der Samurai (the label's inaugural Blu-ray) in an aspect ratio preserving the movie's original theatrical exhibition of
around 1.85:1 on this AVC-encoded BD-25. In his commentary, Kleinert says that he chose to shoot his second feature on the Arri Alexa to give the
image enhanced clarity and crispness. In post-production, the director worked with colorists to digitally re-grade the picture thrice because it wasn't
dark enough for him. The nighttime scenes in the forest are pitch black and low-lit around The Samurai and Jakob. Kleinert sought a dark look and
there is a coarse faux grain structure permeating the blacks. If you're watching Der Samurai on a large projector or widescreen TV from afar,
you won't notice the grain that much but if you examine the images very closely on a monitor (like I also did), then the grain will stand out more.
Some viewers may interpret this as heavy video noise but I believe this to be an accurate visual representation of this ultra low-budget indie. Kleinert
also includes a surreal scene set in a bar that is drawn from Jakob's imagination. It incorporates light lavender (see Screenshot #10) and pink tints
bathed in smoke to give it a dreamlike quality. Other scenes are characterized by rich green foliage, saturated reds, and neon.
Artsploitation has allotted eight chapter breaks for the main feature.
Artsploitation provides the original German DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (24-bit and encoded at 3812 kbps) and a lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 option. Music
and sound effects make the surrounds come alive with a fully enveloping soundscape. The rears are also active when a person or animal moves
through a thicket in the woods, making effective use of off-screen sounds. German dialogue is consistently crisp along the center and front channels.
Artsploitation has supplied optional white English subtitles in a relatively small font but very readable type.
Der Samurai is an entertaining and disturbing horror thriller about a psychopathic transvestite battling wits with a vulnerable policeman. In its transfer Artsploitation has given the picture the appropriate color densities that director Till Kleinert sought. The label's DTS-HD MA track is extremely effective in conveying the film's atmosphere. The commentary and featurette are both informative and useful. Tarantino fans should check out this quality Blu-ray of Der Samurai.
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