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TOKYO -- TOKYO (AP) — “Last Samurai Standing,” a Netflix bid launching connected Thursday, is acceptable successful a Japan wherever the feudal samurai epoch is astir to end.
The hero, Saga Kokushu, played by Junichi Okada, is 1 of dozens of samurai successful a live-or-die endurance crippled to prevention family, assemblage and honor. Participants person woody tags to deterioration and adhd different for each rival they kill. The past antheral lasting collects 100 cardinal yen ($650 million).
Directed by Michihito Fujii, whose credits see “The Journalist,” astir a fearless reporter, and “A Family,” depicting yakuza gangsters, the bid pays homage to modern-day video games arsenic good arsenic the bequest of Japanese filmmakers similar Akira Kurosawa and the archetypal “The Last Samurai.”
That 2003 film, directed by Edward Zwick, starred Tom Cruise arsenic the samurai hero. It was a large hit, including successful Japan, and it helped Japan’s ain stars similar Ken Watanabe and Hiroyuki Sanada successful their Hollywood careers.
“The intent we had successful caput was to update the jidaigeki,” said Okada, utilizing the Japanese word for the samurai play genre.
Okada, who besides served arsenic choreographer and shaper successful “Last Samurai Standing,” said everybody successful Japanese movie knew truthful overmuch astir the greats who had preceded them, similar Kurosawa. The genre adjacent came with a grandiose “textbook” astir the due portrayal of Japanese culture.
“We took the want-to approach, keeping successful caput that, portion thoroughly studying jidaigeki, we were going to bash what we privation to make, and marque thing that looked perfectly cool,” Okada told The Associated Press.
Okada is simply a achromatic loop successful Brazilian jujitsu. He has starred successful assorted films including “The Eternal Zero,” astir World War II Zero pilots, directed by Takashi Yamazaki, of “Godzilla Minus One.”
Okada antecedently worked with manager Fujii successful “Hard Days,” a 2023 movie astir a constabulary serviceman who tries to screen up a hit-and-run. Okada handpicked Fujii for “Last Samurai Standing.”
“We wanted thing much emotional, with much of a story, and much extent successful quality portrayal, much of a depiction of culture. That’s what I kept successful mind,” Okada said.
There’s besides plentifulness of humor and gore, with swords spitting sparks and flying severed heads. Every person, adjacent successful crowded conflict scenes, is quality and not computer-generated.
In 1 country wherever swordsmen’s bodies drawback connected fire, the actors wore fireproof cogwheel and risked burns, Okada said.
What saves the enactment from being a numbing bid of enactment scenes is its communicative line, with the cosmopolitan taxable of being caught successful a ruthless satellite successful transition.
The women characters, including newcomer Yumia Fujisaki, consciousness much modern than the stereotypes who thin to populate older samurai works.
The formed besides includes “Himizu” and “Parasyte” prima Shota Sometani, Kazunari Ninomiya, memorable successful Clint Eastwood’s “Letters from Iwo Jima,” and Takayuki Yamada, who has acted successful assorted films and TV shows including “The Naked Director” connected Netflix.
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Yuri Kageyama is connected Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama
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