YOJIMBO (1961)
Criterion Collection Spine #52
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Starring Toshiro Mifune and Tatsuya Nakadai
Kurosawa’s deconstruction of the Super Samurai genre (coined by the excellent Toho Masterworks documentary that accompanies the Blu-ray release), which he helped popularize in the 1950s with RASHOMON (1950); SEVEN SAMURAI (1954); THRONE OF BLOOD (1957); and THE HIDDEN FORTRESS (1958), is arguably the legendary Japanese director’s most influential film in his storied and illustrious career. Twice aped by filmmakers both in Europe and Hollywood; Kurosawa can be credited with indirectly helping give birth to the Spaghetti Western. Sergio Leone essentially lifted his plot a mere 3 years later for FISTFUL OF DOLLARS, with Clint Eastwood playing the conspicuously familiar part of a Man with No Name anti-hero. It was so similar to YOJIMBO’s story and protagnonist that the producers of Kurosawa’s original film successfully sued Leone, eventually winning 15% of film’s worldwide grosses and exclusive distribution rights in Japan. Kurosawa reportedly said he made more money from this deal than he ever did with the release of YOJIMBO itself. In 1996, filmmaker Walter Hill wisely avoided the same legal problems by crediting Kurosawa and his film when he remade YOJIMBO as the less successful LAST MAN STANDING. The interwoven collection of inspirations and influences is an interesting one, especially when factoring in the 1929 novel RED HARVEST as the possible original source for YOJIMBO’s plot. STAR WARS geeks can probably see the connection between all of this and George Lucas, who adopted the fake working title BLUE HARVEST during the 1982 production of RETURN OF THE JEDI. Even the origins of the word Jedi can be traced back to the Japanese translation of Period Drama: jidaigeki. Oh what a tangled web we weave.

The simplest and possibly most succinct description I’ve read for YOJIMBO comes from prolific Hong Kong director Johnnie To, “A film that combines the sitcom and the samura film.” I assume he means Sitcom in the sense of the great Situational Comedies of Hollywood’s past, fare like Billy Wilder’s THE APARTMENT (1960) and Blake Edwards’ VICTOR VICTORIA (1982). Whatever the case, it should give readers a fairly good idea of what to expect from YOJIMBO. Whether its the buffoonish gangsters, an epically inert battle between the warring gangs, or Mifune’s quirky mannerisms, there’s a broad humor throughout that his previous work generally strayed away from. The action still possesses a Samurai spectacle sensibility, albeit executed using an obliquely American Western style married with Gangster film influences. Nowhere is this more evident than during the climatic dusty High Noon Showdown (I half-expected a tumbleweed rolling into frame). Kurosawa has always been touted as the most Western of Eastern directors, with YOJIMBO acting as his glorious acceptance speech of that fact. The film scholar Alexander Sesonske writes in his essay on YOJIMBO (included with the Criterion Collection’s release) that it seems Kurosawa set aside his usual moral fervor and gave in to his boyish aspirations, all while mischievously taunting “I’ll show you how Western I can be!”

Toshiro Mifune’s iconic portrayal of the nameless Ronin (at one point he haphazardly dubs himself Sanjuro, which translates to Thirtysomething) is easily his most engaging and best recognized, almost instantly catapulting the actor from Movie Star to Screen Legend. Kurosawa used the actor’s expansive range and subtle expressiveness expertly in his films as far back as 1949′s STRAY DOG, but in YOJIMBO Mifune’s physical presence takes center stage. The simple twitch of his shoulders (a tic peppered throughout due to an unspoken character detail: Our Bodyguard-for-Hire had fleas), the pervasive scratching during moments of contemplation, characterization conveyed through a toothpick, and that confident smirk before barreling into his opponent with blurring speed.  Whether dispatching foes in blink-and-you’ll-miss-it fashion or convincingly tearing down a room single-handedly, Mifune’s lethal physcality explodes onto the screen as it lends credence to the Ronin’s claims of unmatched fighting prowess. In simpler terms, this dude’s a bad@$$ mofo.

Every good Anti-Hero needs a suitably deplorable villain, and Kurosawa smartly supplies the gruff and disheveled Mifune with the perfectly kempt and swanky foil. This diametrically opposed antagonist is played by another of the director’s mainstays, Tatsuya Nakadai. Sporting a fancy and embellished silk robe (accessorizing with a anachronistic scarf that works despite itself), its opulence sits in sharp contrast to Mifune’s scruffy cotton-tailored attire. While the Ronin prefers to shroud himself and his skills until absolutely necessary, Nakadai’s mischievous gangster relishes brandishing his newly acquired revolver (a rare item in this Japan’s pre-modernization period) at every opportunity. Its barrel sneakily creeps out from underneath Nakadai’s robe at any given moment, all while he cracks a devilish grin and a fiendish glint sparkles in his eye.

Another endearing aspect of YOJIMBO is Masaru Sato’s playfully jazzy and percussive score, leaving quite a big first impression during the sprawling opening credits. The boisterous score, which Kurosawa insisted needed to sound like Voodoo Dance music, seems to follow Mifune (perhaps even urging him on, an astute observation made by Sesonske in his essay) and celebrates in his destructive wake. There are so many other things that I want to write about in detail — technical aspects like Kurosawa’s thrilling composition of frame, the revolutionary camera work of famed Japanese cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa and YOJIMBO’s talented cameramen (the difficulties of shooting the film’s many iconic images, like shots of a stray dog carrying around a severed hand and Mifune overlooking the “battlefield”, are discussed extensively in both the documentary and booklet that Criterion includes), or the innovative sound effects employed to simulate the sound of sliced flesh for the first time in any film — but to do so would result in a prohibitively long post that I doubt anyone would have the patience to read. These elements are made all the more magnificent by the newly remastered DTS-HD 3.0 Audio Track and gorgeously restored Hi-Def image, courtesy of the fine folks at Criterion.

As soon as the end credits rolled and that rambunctious theme music blared through my speakers one last time, I immediately had the urge to watch YOJIMBO all over again (and I did too — a couple of days later). I’m very much looking forward to seeing SANJURO, which continues the adventures of our charming Boyguard-for-Hire. I would also like to revisit FISTFUL OF DOLLARS with a newfound perspective, curious to pick out the similarities and call out the shot-for-shot recreations. Nearly 50 years after first winning over audiences across the world, its safe to say that Kurosawa’s Super Samurai Sitcom still has the potency to breed rabid fans out of those newcomers foolish enough to have waited so long. Is it any wonder why some hail it as his most popular and beloved masterpiece?

FANBOYS ★★
DVD ★★

FANBOYS is so full of cameos (which include everyone from current geek favorites like Seth Rogan and Kevin Smith, to old schoolers like William Shatner and Carrie Fisher) its easy to get caught up in a game of “omigosh, look who else is in this!” and lose track of what exactly the flick is about. You definitely forget how utterly unfunny all of these juvenile and cliche shenanigans and antics are. The film mostly fails as a Comedy, unless you’re a big unabashed STAR WARS geek  that can’t get enough of this stuff — Even as the FAMILY GUY and ROBOT CHICKEN folks drain every last bit of funny out of the beloved Space Opera.  If you find gags like a van fitted to look and sound like the Millennium Falcon (complete with misfiring Nitro tanks in place for a failing hyperdrive) or hallucinogenics-fueled STAR WARS-themed “high-jinks” at all amusing, then I suppose some laughs will be had. To some extent even a STAR TREK geek might find something to guffaw about –as long as they have a good sense of humor and don’t mind being the butt of many of the flick’s jokes. The dramatic elements, specifically with the cast coping with their friend’s imminent death at the hands of the Big C, also come off as last-minute additions to a plot that meanders and lacks much drive. A romantic subplot feels so artificial that it barely registered, leaving one to ponder what the point of it all is.

What the film does succeed in doing, exemplified in an epilogue that serves as the film’s only noteworthy moment (and not just because it features co-star Kristen Bell in a Slave Girl Leia bikini — though that certainly helps), is remind us of a time when STAR WARS was untouchable, cool, and unwaveringly loved. George Lucas could do no wrong, and all of fandom was salivating at the prospect of a Prequel trilogy. Personally, I can barely remember how it was before 1999. Before the incessant hater rants and devastating feelings of utter disappointment became the norm. It was a sweeter and gentler time, and I think the film captures the moment right before geeks turned on their most loved of geeky properties. I think its fairly emblematic of geekdom in general, as the internet seemed to usher in the era of the Disgruntled Geek. I think if the flick had focused on this aspect more, and less on the silly and ultimately cringe-worthy attempts at humor, FANBOYS may have been a genuinely moving love letter to STAR WARS and its fans. As it stands, the flick settles for being a dumb Comedy that’s just not very funny.

FANBOYS’ DVD is chock-full of featurettes, unfortunately they’re so full of fluff that I simply couldn’t sit through them. There’s a behind-the-scenes segment, one that details the actors and the respective characters they play, something about the dance choreography that appears in the movie for all but 30 seconds of screen time, and a series of webisodes that appear to be as equally lacking in substance. There’s also the requisite collection of deleted scenes (with one featuring William Katt of CARRIE and GREATEST AMERICAN HERO fame — guess he was too washed up even for these guys), trailers, and commentary track with the filmmakers. I won’t even bother going over the picture and sound since this flick is currently only available in dreadful standard definition. A Blu-ray release is forthcoming, but who cares at this point. Best to just avoid FANBOYS, its as stinky as its titular subjects.

UP IN THE AIR ★★★★
Blu-Ray ★★

A slightly predictable but endearing Drama (with a few generous dashes of comic seasoning), Jason Reitman’s third and slightly overrated directorial offering falls a tad short of his previous successes. Heralded by some as the “Best Movie of 2009″, UP IN THE AIR falters under such hyperbolic pronouncements. While the the film features great performances from George Clooney (who’s starting to look really OLD), Vera Farmiga (looking hotter than ever), and Anna Kendrick (almost stealing the show completely from her more experienced co-stars), a slew of familiar faces (and a few non-actors) also provide welcome support for our main cast with glorified cameos that rarely feel disingenuous (there are maybe a couple that ring a bit false). And thanks to a saccharine-lite conclusion that refreshingly leaves at least one character’s future “Up in the Air”, Reitman’s latest effort continues his winning streak if not his perfect game.

Sadly the Blu-ray doesn’t fare as well, featuring pretty anemic features like Deleted Scenes (which at least showcases a Spacesuit Dream Sequence that should have stayed in the final cut), an unimaginative music video that consists of a song cut to a montage of scenes from the flick, an odd Gag Reel that only has one gag, the theatrical teaser and trailer, and a Commentary Track with the director that I wasn’t compelled enough to listen to. The disc however gets points for Audio/Visual presentation, featuring a sharp and bright transfer and appropriately low-key DTS track. Worthy of a rental, but probably wise to hold off until a Special Edition arrives.

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