The film follows the Fudoh gang of teenaged assassins, who wreak havoc on an organised crime syndicate as they avenge the murder of the titular character’s brother.
While he’d already made a slew of low budget films in the years prior to Fudoh: The New Generation, it would be this 1996 entry that elevated him above his contemporaries. Takashi Miike’s career was established in V-Cinema, where he became the poster boy of a generation of 90s filmmakers challenging perceptions of what movies could be. Rather, the broad parameters of the medium are favoured by directors who want to realise ideas quickly and easily, without major studio intervention or censorship. V-Cinema is essentially Japan’s version of direct-to-video filmmaking – only without the reputation for poor quality. FUDOH: THE NEW GENERATION (1996)Īfter cinema attendance plummeted in the 80s, a new format of low-budget film production opened the floodgates for a wave of directors to make their mark on the industry. Accordingly, this diverse and robust career is lined with hits and misses, while spanning almost every genre and budget conceivable.įirst Love serves as a refreshing and fun reminder of everything Japan’s premiere cult director has achieved – and an opportune moment to reflect on ten of his most memorable works. He is the antithesis of the ‘auteur’, maintaining a nihilistic stance on the artistic value of filmmaking while frequently working as a director-for-hire. It’s been described as a love letter to the director’s frenzied early days, when he made his name as an unhinged force of the Japanese V-Cinema industry, churning out up to seven films a year.
Mixing comedy, action, romance and drama across a riotous and completely OTT two hours, First Love has already been compared to films like Pulp Fiction and Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas since it premiered at the BFI London Film Festival last year. But like Miike’s best works, this is no run-of-the-mill shock flick. The film, which follows a triplicated plot concerning a sick young boxer, a prostitute, and a yakuza gang war, sets the tone within the first three minutes when a man gets his head cleanly decollated via medium of samurai sword. Inspired by the visceral works of Paul Verhoeven and David Cronenberg, he was once described by Quentin Tarantino as “the godfather of ultra-violent, get-under-your-skin movies.” With his latest film, First Love, hitting UK cinemas today, don’t be surprised if more than a few unwitting viewers find their Valentine’s Day ruined. One of the most irrepressible filmmakers in Japan, Takashi Miike has directed over 100 features since his debut in 1991 in a career that’s never been shy of controversy.
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