2 Great movies: Zatoichi & Oldboy

Got my deliveries of these two movies at the weekend, and watched them both. I would recommend both of them to anyone who:
a) Likes asian cinema
b) Likes violence
c) Likes “Beat” Takeshi Kitano
d) Likes people eating live octopus
e) Likes Samurai movies
f) Like all of the above

Zatoichi:
I started watching this film expecting a standard Samurai swordplay movie, with the legendary Japanese character Zatoichi as the focus. When the movie finished I was gobsmacked. This is one of my favourite movies ever. From the excellent Takeshi Kitano performance and direction, to the awesome swordplay, to the supreme comedy moments, to the excellent musical undertones……its just fantastic!
The gore is excessive, but not ridiculous, and although some of the effects look a bit pants, it doesn’t matter. You still find yourself shouting in excitement when a blade slashes down someones back, leaving a bloody slice. The swordfights are quick and deadly, just as they should be. No long drawn out clashes of swords here, its one-two-dead, and its perfect.
The comedic moments, of which there are quite a few, are classic. I found myself laughing out loud on more than one occasion. You can really see Takeshi Kitano’s comedic background come through here. I don’t want to go on and on about this so I’ll finish.
PS:
The music is also fantastic. And the dance piece at the end….unexpected and genius.

Oldboy:
This is pure asian extreme thriller, at its best. I won’t go into the story, but the action is intense and the voilence is extreme. Plenty of cringe-worthy moments in this one. The acting is really top notch and the direction and cinematography is slick and unique. It covers some very risque material, and it doesn’t shy away from it either and like Zatiochi there are plenty of comedic moments which lighten the mood somewhat.

I would recommend both these films to anyone who is into their movies, especially Asian cinema.

Now, I wonder who is going to make a Zatoichi videogame….. :D