Review of Ichi the Killer

When the first line of the plot from Wikipedia states: "Ichi masturbates on an apartment balcony whilst watching a pimp assault a prostitute.", you just know what you are getting yourself involved in. It's Takashi Miike after all, the controversial Japanese filmmaker that embellishes in squeamish violence. Whilst there is no doubt that the onscreen torture and explicit gore warrants the extremities that Miike addresses, it's tonally inconsistent and occasionally dull. A psychologically damaged individual, who has been manipulated into killing, is being pursued by a sadomasochist. The media frenzy when video games became mainstream was inescapable. Miike took that absurdity and conveyed it through visceral killings that have found their own notoriety. Ichi plays 'Tekken 3' every night, and starts to assume the fighting stances of the characters (I do love me some Yoshimitsu). The neck slicing and body chopping from the blade attached to his shoe made for some hilarious death sequences. Although plagued with unnecessary poor visual effects, it created some enjoyment. Conversely, we then have Kakihara who utilises unethical torture methods to get the answers he requires. Suspending Yakuza members with chains hooked to their fleshy backs and piercing them with giant needles. Excellent use of prosthetics and a superbly fun performance from Asano. These darker scenes of torture juxtapose the humorous slicing from Ichi, further emphasising the exaggerative perspective of the media. The problem is the narrative then becomes tonally inconsistent. Once you see one kill from Ichi, your mind becomes numb to the torturing that follows. Ichi is also arguably the less interesting character, succumbing to insufferably childish behaviour. Shifting the narrative focus on him instead of Kakihara coincidentally slowed the plot's pacing as you don't particularly care for him. I'd rather watch "Kakihara The Torturer". The ending was underwhelming as well, considering the build up that preceded it. However Ichi remains brutal yet enjoyable.