Fudoh - the New Generation [DVD]

 

 

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This film has everything. Starting as a fairly routine though slick yakuza thriller, this gets weirder by the minute, as school children and strippers join the crew, all with ingenious and often inspired assassination techniques. Being a Takashi Miike film (he of Audition and Full Metal Yakuza fame), it is shot with trademark style, with some incredible editing enhancing the action, which is all as violent as one would expect from one of his films. Pleasing also is the wicked streak of dark humour that runs through this film, something that is often missing from his other films, and which makes this all the more enjoyable. Its characters and invention will keep you laughing to the end, provided you have the stomach for it.
The DVD itself comes in a fairly naff box, brought to you by Eastern Cult cinema, along with their usual extras (Biographies, filmographies, stills and trailers) - good effort, but no reward.It does come in anamorphic widescreen though, and it all looks lovely.

Fudoh: The New Generation (1996) is something of a precursor to director Miike Takashi's later, more iconic cult Yakuza thriller, Dead or Alive (1999). Like that particular film, Fudoh finds Miike at his most full on and outrageous; letting his imagination and brutal sense of humour run riot in order to elevate something that could have quite easily become another run-of-the-mill, straight-to-video Japanese crime-picture, into a gonzo, comic-book style slab of chic exploitation. As with many of the director's other feature films, such as the aforementioned Dead or Alive, as well as Full Metal Yakuza (1997) and Ichi the Killer (2001), Fudoh is notable for its scenes of excessive violence, incredibly dark humour and moments of absurd abandon; something that occasionally jars against the more realistic elements of the plot.

As is perhaps evident from the presentation of the film, the story of Fudoh is adapted from a Japanese anime series, and - in keeping with this idea - the film often has the feel of a live-action cartoon; with the violence and combat exaggerated to an almost comical degree while the characters remain more like ironic caricatures than anything approaching believable human beings. This will obviously alienate some viewers who aren't perhaps as well prepared for the later bursts of over the top violence and unconventional humour; especially since the earlier scenes of the film seem to suggest something more serious or dramatic; reminding me in those early sequences of Miike's subsequent pictures, Shinjuku Triad Society (1996), Rainy Dog (1997) and Ley Lines (1999). I suppose it would be easy to scan the plot-outline and dismiss the film entirely on account of the low-budget and over-reliance on outré shock sequences, but to do so would really be overlooking the amazing style that Miike brings to the film; moving from the slow-burning drama of the earlier sequences within the Fudoh compound, to the fevered, comic-book-style violence, gunplay and balletic martial arts action that will eventually follow.

Like the majority of films in the Yakuza sub-genre, the plot revolves around the ideas of family and loyalty; with the depiction of violence, betrayal, brotherhood and retribution all figuring strongly from the first scene to the last. However, what sets this film apart from other, similarly-themed Yakuza pictures is the novel creation of our lead character, the precocious Riki Fudoh; a seemingly successful high school student living out a dual life as the boss of a gang of teenage criminals. This is where Miike's staggeringly twisted imagination goes full-throttle; giving us a gang populated by gun-toting elementary school kids, a motorbike riding man-mountain, two sailor-suited school girls, and a teenage pole-dancer who can do startling things with a blow-dart and a certain part of her anatomy.

Along the way we have numerous assassinations, decapitations, hermaphrodite/lesbian sex scenes, shoot outs, back-stabbings, beatings and explosions, not to mention a man who's face literally dissolves in a manner that is both high amusing and stomach-churning simultaneously! It's pure shock-cinema, essentially; something that has the potential to amuse, disgust, bore and excite an audience in equal measure, with Miike giving us some great set-pieces and flashes of that unique style and intuitive directorial approach that he would go on to perfect with subsequent films like Shinjuku Triad Society, The Bird People in China (1998), Audition (1999), Dead or Alive 2: Birds (2000) and Visitor Q (2001). Fudoh: The New Generation doesn't quite come close to that high standard of filmmaking; with the film occasionally feeling somewhat lightweight and impersonal within the broader aspects of Miike's career; again, recalling the style and presentation of the first Dead or Alive film or Ichi the Killer, particularly in the way in which they seem to be more about getting the job done and trying to do something unique, as opposed to really producing great cinematic art.

Still, if you enjoyed those two particular examples of Miike's work, then Fudoh will definitely be a film for you; with the recurrent bursts of sensational violence, kinky-sex and outrageous characters managing to enliven a story that is continually interesting, despite being fairly well worn. The themes of vengeance, betrayal, family and honour are all covered exceedingly well, with Miike just about managing to avoid slipping into the territory of "style over substance" by serving the plot and the characters as well as his own more subversive, anarchic impulses. The ending is somewhat anti-climactic given the incredible build up, which is a shame, especially given Miike's reputation for ending his work on a particularly unforgettable note (Dead or Alive, Audition, Gozu, etc); but I suppose, once again, this works well with Miike's more rebellious notions of never giving the audience what they'd expect.

Fudoh: The New Generation (1996) is something of a precursor to director Miike Takashi's later, more iconic cult Yakuza thriller, Dead or Alive (1999). Like that particular film, Fudoh finds Miike at his most full on and outrageous; letting his imagination and brutal sense of humour run riot in order to elevate something that could have quite easily become another run-of-the-mill, straight-to-video Japanese crime-picture, into a gonzo, comic-book style slab of chic exploitation. As with many of the director's other feature films, such as the aforementioned Dead or Alive, as well as Full Metal Yakuza (1997) and Ichi the Killer (2001), Fudoh is notable for its scenes of excessive violence, incredibly dark humour and moments of absurd abandon; something that occasionally jars against the more realistic elements of the plot.

As is perhaps evident from the presentation of the film, the story of Fudoh is adapted from a Japanese anime series, and - in keeping with this idea - the film often has the feel of a live-action cartoon; with the violence and combat exaggerated to an almost comical degree while the characters remain more like ironic caricatures than anything approaching believable human beings. This will obviously alienate some viewers who aren't perhaps as well prepared for the later bursts of over the top violence and unconventional humour; especially since the earlier scenes of the film seem to suggest something more serious or dramatic; reminding me in those early sequences of Miike's subsequent pictures, Shinjuku Triad Society (1996), Rainy Dog (1997) and Ley Lines (1999). I suppose it would be easy to scan the plot-outline and dismiss the film entirely on account of the low-budget and over-reliance on outré shock sequences, but to do so would really be overlooking the amazing style that Miike brings to the film; moving from the slow-burning drama of the earlier sequences within the Fudoh compound, to the fevered, comic-book-style violence, gunplay and balletic martial arts action that will eventually follow.

Like the majority of films in the Yakuza sub-genre, the plot revolves around the ideas of family and loyalty; with the depiction of violence, betrayal, brotherhood and retribution all figuring strongly from the first scene to the last. However, what sets this film apart from other, similarly-themed Yakuza pictures is the novel creation of our lead character, the precocious Riki Fudoh; a seemingly successful high school student living out a dual life as the boss of a gang of teenage criminals. This is where Miike's staggeringly twisted imagination goes full-throttle; giving us a gang populated by gun-toting elementary school kids, a motorbike riding man-mountain, two sailor-suited school girls, and a teenage pole-dancer who can do startling things with a blow-dart and a certain part of her anatomy.

Along the way we have numerous assassinations, decapitations, hermaphrodite/lesbian sex scenes, shoot outs, back-stabbings, beatings and explosions, not to mention a man who's face literally dissolves in a manner that is both high amusing and stomach-churning simultaneously! It's pure shock-cinema, essentially; something that has the potential to amuse, disgust, bore and excite an audience in equal measure, with Miike giving us some great set-pieces and flashes of that unique style and intuitive directorial approach that he would go on to perfect with subsequent films like Shinjuku Triad Society, The Bird People in China (1998), Audition (1999), Dead or Alive 2: Birds (2000) and Visitor Q (2001). Fudoh: The New Generation doesn't quite come close to that high standard of filmmaking; with the film occasionally feeling somewhat lightweight and impersonal within the broader aspects of Miike's career; again, recalling the style and presentation of the first Dead or Alive film or Ichi the Killer, particularly in the way in which they seem to be more about getting the job done and trying to do something unique, as opposed to really producing great cinematic art.

Still, if you enjoyed those two particular examples of Miike's work, then Fudoh will definitely be a film for you; with the recurrent bursts of sensational violence, kinky-sex and outrageous characters managing to enliven a story that is continually interesting, despite being fairly well worn. The themes of vengeance, betrayal, family and honour are all covered exceedingly well, with Miike just about managing to avoid slipping into the territory of "style over substance" by serving the plot and the characters as well as his own more subversive, anarchic impulses. The ending is somewhat anti-climactic given the incredible build up, which is a shame, especially given Miike's reputation for ending his work on a particularly unforgettable note (Dead or Alive, Audition, Gozu, etc); but I suppose, once again, this works well with Miike's more rebellious notions of never giving the audience what they'd expect.

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4.0 out of 5 stars I never thought the human body can hold so much blood
A Takashi Miike is always worth looking out for, and this one was highly anticipated. It's one of his earlier Yakuza movies, but still very Miike in approach that was highly... Read more

Published on 25 Nov 2007 by Jenny J.J.I.

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