A general stands alone with a priest on a bloody battle field. On the ground amongst the body’s lies that of his own slain son. Victory has come at a huge cost and there seems no end to the constant warring of Japans feudal war lords. The priest how ever has a plan; he believes that a group of highly trained assassins could be the answer. He believes that if power hungry war lords are assassinated before they can start wars Japan will be at piece. The general pledge to make the priests wishes a reality and sets about searching for suitable orphaned children who can be turned into obedient killing machines. He searches the war torn countryside and finds 10 orphans all male accept one, a girl named Azumi, who just might grow to be the deadliest of them all.
The general takes his finds to a remote mountain hut where they live an idyllic life although filled with rigorous training. There they become skilled beyond most of the outside world in the deadly art of dealing death. All the time they are reminded they live only to fulfil the mission they master has planned for them. When the time comes they are given one final test before they leave. This turns the idyllic existence on its head with its shocking and cruel hearted nature. (Well it would be shocking if all the reviews, synopses and trailers on the net did not give it away). Leaving their home forever they finally embark on a mission that will see them take on some of Japans deadliest warriors and end with a body count so high even the bloodiest gun toting 80's hero would have to stand back an salute little Azumi.
Directed by Ryuhei Kitamura (Versus, Sky High, Godzilla: Final Wars) and based on the popular manga by Yu Koyama, Azumi is "Manga in motion" at its best. The Japanese seem to be able to adapt Manga comics to the screen while keeping very much to the spirit of its comic origins. Where as in the west adaptations seem to be ashamed of there comic source and try and force reality, romance and melodrama where it’s neither welcome or needed. Western Directors always talk about making the character "real" and giving them real world problems, often missing the point of escapism entirely. Either that or they play up horrific camp angles which are just as unwelcome. Not so with Ryuhei Kitamura adaptation of Azumi, which captures the feel of a manga and put it’s into live action with fantastic results. Though Ryuhei Kitamura's films have been very hit and miss, Azumi is defiantly the former an exhilarating and bloody ride.
Aya Ueto who was still in her late teens when Azumi was shot is excellent as the diminutive female assassin. The supporting cast which features many heavyweight Japanese actors as well as newcomers is fantastic. There are so many great characters you would be hard pressed to pick a favourite, though I think mine would be the "monkey faced ninja". Sure some of the characters are slightly camp, but they still retain a hard edge and never become laughable, those that are meant to be evil may be exaggerated, but when the swords swing and the blood flows you never doubt their capacity for violence.
Azumi is an excellent film for its type, beautiful, fast paced, emotional, exciting and brutally bloody. Featuring mad characters, deadly swordplay and blood spraying by the gallon. The director has really gone for excitement and delivers it in spades Azumi is pure entertainment from start to finish and the finish is has to be seen to be believed. If you’re a fan of violent action and swordplay and you have not seen this what the hell are you waiting for, get hold of it now!!!
Buy Azumi / Azumi 2 - Death Or Love from amazon.co.uk
