Bunraku (2010)

Such a frustrating disappointment

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

This movie had a promising pedigree, a great cast and interesting if a bit obvious art direction yet I couldn't connect with anything happening on the screen. The point was obviously to mix cliches of eastern and western and present the whole melange in a unique look that could have worked in the hands of a better filmmaker or as an animated movie. I was on board for the first 5 minutes of the film. The prologue was very charming and made me curious for what was to come. Some may find the premise too ridiculous to believe but I'm perfectly fine with a fantasy setting writing its own rules. The main problem is that set design, however pleasing to the eye, does not make a movie and the movie doesn't deliver anything beyond that. There is no tension to the action scenes that lack weight and impact and I don't find any of the cast relatable or interesting. Dialogue is very artificial which is probably intentional, but it seems like the creators of bunraku were too focused on making the movie look stylish to notice that none of it means anything. What is oddly lacking in style for the most part is ironically the cinematography itself. The movie moves in very predictable and uninspired ways. Occasionally there are some shots that work as a comic book panel and/or look cool but do not necessarily work as a scene or connect to the rest of the movie. Film has a very specific language to it that is different from comics, videogames and the theatre. It is rather deceitful in many ways. You have to take your audience by the eye and guide it through your film. A picture says more than a thousand words and the pictures in Bunraku only tell me some very talented people didn't get their hard work presented in the most flattering way. Copying the aspects of other art forms and applying them to cinema as an experiment can be intriguing but you have to go all the way. If you get caught right in the middle of the road you fail. The fact that I even noticed the lacking cinematography should tell you something about how unengaged I was throughout the entire movie. If all you want to do is style over substance, fine. Not everything has to be deep, wordy and literal. Some of the most intriguing films, especially in animation, would work solely as visual experiences without dialogue of any kind. If you find language clumsy, be visceral. Hong Kong action has that down without any pretense of being art. If you do go for style only though, you really have to deliver.

old well known story. fight scenes. basic virtues as honor, courage and sacrifice. two cultures. pop art inspiration. memories about "Kill Bill". and few good Romanian actors in small roles. maybe, the last detail is the motif to see, for me, as more than a decent film. because, in essence, it is an embroidery of imagination and a kind of popular philosophy. nothing bad . and , not ignoring Woody Harrelson and Ron Pearlman, the reasonable job of Josh Hartnett and Gackt Camui, it could be an interesting proposition. not real credible but a good visual delight. and this is a good motif to see it.

BUNRAKU is one of those hyper-fantasy action flicks that looks like a comic book, a la 300 and SIN CITY. The story takes place in some colourful fantasy world where everyone seems to be an expert in the martial arts and has some legend or other connected to them. As the tale progresses the story lines gradually coalesce with the heroes teaming up to battle the big bads at the climax.According to the director, his intent was to make a film that looks and feels like SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, with the twist that the dances are replaced by fights. To this end, BUNRAKU is a success. There's a lot of action here, and while none of the fighters are amazing, the choreography is crisp and fluid. The fights look good, at the very least. They reminded me of the famous tea house battle in KILL BILL: VOLUME 1.The producers have also assembled a decent cast for this one, and I appreciate the casting of a Japanese guy in the lead role (even though he's a singer, Gackt looks the part all right). I'm no fan of Josh Hartnett but he's at the very least passable, while Woody Harrelsen brings plenty of charm as the third person in the story. Thankfully Demi Moore's screen time is kept to a minimum, but Ron Perlman and Kevin McKidd make a good tag team as the bad guys. BUNRAKU isn't a perfect film - it's not something I would be tempted to watch again - but at least it looks and feels fresh and invigorating, which is more than can be said for most modern American productions.

I had never heard of "Bunraku" when it first came out in 2010...in fact, the first I knew of it was when I saw it priced for $5.00 in the DVD remaindered bin at my local Walmart in 2014. For that price, I was willing to take a chance and invest two hours to watch it.And it turned out OK.Since the actual "Bunraku" referenced by the title is, in fact, the institution of Japanese puppet/marionette theater, the thrust of the film's visuals and the fairly empty and two dimensional nature of the characters and the dialog (and the plot) make sense. "Bunraku" has an arresting and novel approach to its settings and is obviously meant as sheer spectacle and diversion...and not much more. If all you want out of your movie is pretty colors and flashes of motion and light...well, this is the movie for you.I'm not a big fan of Josh Hartnett, but he (and everyone else) does what the role requires of him - deadpan tough-guy schtick reminiscent of the old Spaghetti westerns. Hartnett does this as well as any modern actor, and he performs admirably here.It would have been nice if the plot had any surprises at all, or if the characters deviated in any way from the clichés we've all come to expect from action films, or even if the fight choreography had a little less style and a little more grit. But in the end, the freshness of the fantasy setting kept my interest.I would watch "Enter The Dragon" for the 200th time before I would queue up "Bunraku" again...but I might watch "Bunraku" AFTER the credits rolled on "Dragon".