MartinHafer The fact that this is a very strange film should not come as a surprise, as it was directed by Takashi Miike. Miike's films range from the very weird and funny ("The Happiness of the Katakuris" and "Zebraman") to the gross and difficult to watch ("Iichi the Killer" and "Audition"). One thing his movies are not and that is normal! And, "Sukiyaki Western Django" is truly weird. So much of it makes no sense and it is something you just need to see to believe. It's a re-working of Akira Kurosawa's classic film "Yojimbo" but instead of being set in feudal Japan, it's in a weird crossover world--part Japanese and part western--and by 'western', I mean the American Old West!! And, oddly, all the characters speak English (often very BAD and heavily accented English). As for the look, some of it looks almost neon and the beginning is just freaky--with a classic Japanese print come to life--with the sun being supported by a rope! And, this introduction stars Quentin Tarantino! Weird....mega, mega-weird.The story is about a feud between two rival gangs who have taken over a town--the Heikes (red) and the Genjis (white). Both are evil and spend their time killing and raping folks. Now, a stranger in black arrives in town and you KNOW he'll get all Yojimbo on their behinds! While the idea of the film isn't necessarily bad, I was not impressed for two big reasons. First, the idea wore thin. Seeing Japanese/Western hybrid folks running about is cool...at first. Second, the film is just too nasty. I don't want to see rape scenes and all this Miike violence. So, I was not all that impressed and just found it wasn't my sort of film. Interesting but that just wasn't enough.

tomgillespie2002 This Japanese-Italian crossover is a homage to the great spaghetti westerns of the 1960's and 70's. The oh-so familiar plot is reminiscent of Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece Yojimbo, later remade by Sergio Leone as a western with A Fistful Of Dollars. A brooding gunslinger arrives in a small town that has been torn apart and occupied by two warring clans - the reds and the whites. After advertising his expert gun skills up his arrival, he at first offers up his services to the highest bidder, but after realising the peril faced by the town's innocent natives, he decides that he can put his skills to better use and wage a war against the clans. All of this is seemingly told by a mysterious stranger played by Quentin Tarantino, who introduces the film at the beginning.After the truly cringe-worthy opening scene, in which the aforementioned Tarantino shows off his acting 'skills' and mows down a few faceless bad guys and talks tough, the film seems to pick up some pace. The opening is deliberately designed to look cartoonish, with plastic looking sets and over-the-top blood spraying. It just doesn't work and thankfully moves away from this style and takes on a more traditional method. For all it's trying, the film never leaves second gear. The familiar storyline doesn't offer anything I've not seen before, and the decision to have the Japanese actors speak in broken English with subtitles is an interesting idea I suppose, but just becomes slightly annoying and confusing. I would expect better from a director such as Takashi Miike, who made the excellent Audition and Ichi The Killer. I just pray he doesn't become another homage-loving filmmaker like Tarantino.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

Dominik Schlatter there is a chance that this movie is great and that i'm actually the idiot who just couldn't see all its good qualities. there is that chance.. well, i seriously doubt it.here's why: i get a movie, that wants to be funny and cruel at the same time. 'severance' and 'shaun of the dead' would be a good example. or 'very bad things'. (i'm really not squeamish, when it comes to pitch-black humor)but django? the scene when the mother gets raped and watches her son cry over the corpse of his dad? that's (sorry) too damn cruel to go with all those unbelievably stupid red-gang scenes. other scenes are just silly (but not in a funny way) and therefore unnecessary. the schizo, for example. or the sheriff: out of the blue he shoots the female gunfighter in the shootout. why is that in the movie? i could go on and on... but i won't.it is one of THE worst movies that i've seen. just writing about it pisses me off once again...i will tell you one strenght of the movie though: the cinematography (beautiful pictures), the camera-work (great shots) and the costumes. the perfect setup. what the crew should have done was get another director (a sane one, please. preferably one with an intact soul)and a new script and start over. OK, i'm done.

RedApoc004 Short Version: Japanese culture and American Wild West collide. The two concepts flow together very well. Plot is solid if a bit thin, but contains a few twists. Tone is laid back with some dramatic moments that'll keep you grounded. Characters are amazing and unforgettable.Setting: The movie mostly takes place in a Wild West style settlement, the kind with one street and houses on either side. However, the architecture, the inhabitants, and the atmosphere of the town are all Japanese. Two warring clans, the Reds and the Whites, have taken over, but remain on their own sides of the town for the most part. A lone gunslinger wanders into the town, offering his services to the highest bidder. He soon realizes, however, that both clans are evil and need to be extinguished, and so the plot goes on.Honestly, when you cut away all the fluff, the story boils down to a three-way war between the two clans and a couple of expert gunslingers. Fast-paced action and broken English can make the story hard to follow, but if you pay attention, there are a few twists and turns that'll keep you engaged.Tone: The movie is moderately light-hearted. A couple of characters give some comic relief, and a good chunk of the movie is not rooted in reality. On the other hand, the motivation behind the characters is real enough. There are a few scenes and a large piece of the story that really comes into play later during the movie that grounds you. I'm not saying it's the perfect blend of mindless action with superb storytelling, but it does a pretty good job.Characters: Personally, the characters went a long way towards selling the movie. There are a ton of them, and each one is unique and unforgettable. Both clan leaders are rotten in their own right, combine that with a Japanese Clint Eastwood, a sheriff with a very Gollum-esquire split personality disorder, a gun-toting granny, and Quentin Tarantino. You can't go wrong.