Ichi The Killer

Last night a friend and I watched (or tried to watch) a Japanese film called Ichi the Killer directed by Takashi Miike. It was based on a manga series also called Ichi the Killer. We didn't finish the movie mainly due to the fact that it has no plot. The film starts off with a man named Kakihara looking for his "boss" (they are members of a crime syndicate) and a mysterious figure named Ichi lurking around the city (presumably Tokyo). When you finally get acquainted with all the characters and their roles in the story (more than thirty minutes into the film) you find out the boss is dead. From their is no apparent impetus for the rest of the action. You have this vague notion that Kakihara is looking for Ichi (who killed "the boss"), but that is not really clear. The bulk of what we watched is made up of torture or sexual fantasy scenes (frequently a combination of the two) that contribute nothing to story other than to show you how messed up these people are. I'm not against violence in movies, but like every other aspect of film, it has to be relevant to the whole story. Not just some exposé of how many gory things something can think of and fit into a ninety minute movie.

It's not a forgettable movie, it just has no point. If you must watch it, let it be for no other reason than to say that you have seen it.