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The epic ambition of ‘Bunraku’
Fantastic Fest is obviously a genre festival. But sometimes festival films just can’t help themselves, and mash-up two genres instead of sticking to one. And, sometimes a movie comes along that blends a smorgasbord of genres. Such is the case with director Guy Moshe’s “Bunraku,” which combines elements of samurai, western, noir, comic book and buddy movies along with aesthetic nods to video games and origami.
For a film with such sweeping ambition, somewhat amazingly, Moshe was able to pull off the tale of two men — The Drifter (Josh Hartnett) and Yoshi (Gackt Camui) — looking to restore order and honor to a town ruled by the iron fist of a man known as Nicola the Woodcutter (Ron Perlman). The film’s heroes are guided on their quest for justice and vengeance by the weary yet sage local bartender (Woody Harrelson).
The title of the film — taken from the name for a style of traditional Japanese puppet theater — references the omnipresent narrator, who has a rich, slightly self-aware comic timbre that is somewhat hard to place. As the credits roll, it makes complete sense that it is the voice of Faith No More frontman Mike Patton, a man with eclectic and eccentric background befitting the scope of the film. The use of the narrator, as well as surreal visuals that echo German Expressionism, are meant as an attempt to play with the fourth wall, Moshe said following the screening.
“Bunraku” also features some spectacular hand-to-hand fight sequences, though at times the action is stretched a little too thin, as The Drifter and Yoshi must do battle nine assassins before they can eventually battle Nicola. As with the recent “Scott Pilgrim,” explicitly enumerating the number of foes the protagonists must defeat, makes the audience a little too conscious of the looming fights and the amount of time that may be required to reach a resolution.
After the screening Sunday night, Moshe said that the action genre is a very simple one, and that with “Bunraku,” he was attempting to take an innovative approach in serving the story in a new way. The film does get caught up in its own cleverness early on, despite any individual short comings of the film, Moshe proves with “Bunraku” that he is a filmmaker with a curious imagination and a committed and singular vision.
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