Ichi the Killer
Short description
A yakuza boss named Anjo has vanished, along with a large sum of money. His second-in-command, the sadistic and self-mutilating Kakihara, refuses to accept that Anjo simply ran off and begins hunting for him, using torture and violence against anyone who might know something. The search brings him into contact with a shy, withdrawn young man called Ichi, who is being manipulated by others and who, when something triggers him, becomes a killer capable of inflicting the kind of suffering Kakihara has long been drawn to. Kakihara becomes fixated on finding and facing him.
The film is Takashi Miike's fifth feature in the chronological list of his 42 directed works, following Audition and preceding Visitor Q. Sakichi Sato wrote the screenplay, and the cast includes Tadanobu Asano as Kakihara, Nao Omori as Ichi, Shinya Tsukamoto as Jijii and Susumu Terajima as Suzuki, among 21 credited performers. It was made for about 1 million dollars and released in Japan in December 2001.
On IMDb the film holds 6.9 out of 10 from roughly 64,000 votes, and on TMDB 7 out of 10 from about 1,150 votes. A critics' rating of 6.3 out of 10 from 39 reviews places it somewhat below the audience scores, though the three figures sit fairly close together.
What's left behind the scenes
- As a promotional stunt, paper bags were distributed to those attending the late-night screening of this film at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
- Kakihara's scars on the sides of his mouth are known as the Glasgow smile, or the Chelsea smile, because organized crime in these British cities often leaves such a mark on their enemies.
- Director Takashi Miike initially intended to engage the original manga's author, Hideo Yamamoto, as the screenwriter, to write the script entirely in the form of a manga. However, the idea had to be abandoned when Yamamoto felt he would be unable to complete the script due to a creative crisis.
- Kakihara's ringtone is the film's musical theme.
- For the scene in which his character is hung on hooks and tortured, actor Susumu Terajima required 12 hours of makeup and other preparation, followed by another 12 hours to film the scene.
- Although almost every member of the yakuza carries a gun, only two shots were fired throughout the entire film, and no one was killed by them.
- When Kakihara (Tadanobu Asano) is attacked on the street, protective padding is visible under his clothing.
- The name Ichi means "one," which is why he wears the yellow number 1 on his costume.
Similar movies
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Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
