Blu-ray Review: 13 Assassins (2011)

The title that 13 Assassins unavoidably brings to mind is the monumental Seven Samurai - both are about the titular group of warriors facing a siege of a small village - but the numerical advantage of Assassins proves to be indicative of a significant shortcoming. Whereas legendary director Akira Kurosawa luxuriated in three-plus hours to introduce his band of seven, Takashi Miike (a Japanese director famous for rather more sordid work) allows us only two hours in the company of thirteen. The end result is that it remains rather hard to remember each character, and virtually impossible to discern any particular traits in all but a couple of the cast. Few, if any, of them receive any individual screen time or opportunities to differentiate themselves from the rest.

Even the (at times tortuously) slow first act of the film ignores much in the way of character development, Miike more intent on detailing political alliances and establishing the late Shogun-era backdrop of the mid-19th Century. This section is largely confined to rather similar looking, murkily lit interiors, and conversations throw around many unknown names. The director's almost complete avoidance of establishing shots in this section gives it a hemmed-in, set-bound feel, which is not initially promising. Flashes of the trademark Miike brutality are the only memorable moments, albeit perhaps not for the most desirable reasons.

Then, however, after about an hour, proceedings open up considerably. Done with establishing the various clan rivalries and political manoeuvring, 13 Assassins settles down into a rather straightforward small group of heroes versus overwhelming odds scenario. The film finally explodes into an extraordinary orgy of swordplay that Miike manages to sustain for 45 thrilling minutes. Some suspension of disbelief is required - there's a bovine stampede rendered with iffy CGI, and the enemies do tend to line up one-by-one rather than make use of their huge numbers - but the incredible kineticism of the action, not to mention its supreme choreography, is a sight to see. Despite this the violence remains surprisingly restrained, extreme bloodletting kept to a relative minimum.

It's only in this final showdown where characters do come to the fore, their actions defining them better than any earlier dialogue scenes. Particularly Koji Yakusho as the heroes' leader Shinzaemon emerges as a monolithic figure, oozing gravitas, and the chilling detachment of Goro Inakagi's bloodlust-fuelled villain Lord Naritsugu proves an able foil. A shame, then, that just before we finally get to know some of the protagonists, most of them die, preventing any real investment in their plight.



Release Information
Country: UK / Region: B / Version: N/A / Discs: 1 / Distributor: Artificial Eye

Presentation
The film proves to be a bit disappointing in the looks department, with drab colours throughout (even in sunlight) and fairly soft detail. I was tempted to reach for the TV's dreaded Vivid colour settings to inject a bit of life - never a good sign. A high bitrate keeps any artifacting in check, however, meaning the quite strong grain never becomes intrusive. Sound-wise it's more successful, the DTS-HD track delivering thundering horse charges and the exaggerated thwunk of sword on flesh with ease.

Extras
Twenty minutes' worth of deleted scenes - all in 1080p/24 and with 5.1 DTS-HD audio to boot - are offcuts from the film's longer Japanese version. Most consist simply of extended ins and outs of scenes and add little, but there are a couple of more major trims, one in particular I'm grateful was cut, its outlandish tone jarring with the rest of the film. Typically, it's this contentious scene that the director cites as his favourite in the accompanying 20-minute interview (subtitled).



Summary
A thrilling hour of samurai heroics preceeded by an at times slightly dull set-up, 13 Assassins rewards patience with but never manages to overcome its more indelible flaws.