"Dead or Alive" is certainly an extreme experience in terms of violence and all round gore. Be it a man ripping off his own arm, a prostitute coughing up fresh semen after performing an oral or a woman gargling to death in her own excrement, this is a film you won't forget in a hurry.
But if you start looking past the hardcore exterior you may find yourself staring into a void. The plot is pretty standard to anyone familiar with Yakuza films- get hold on money for one thing or another, avoid the vengeful cop, shoot people etc. Sure, Miike over blows the violence by about 900% as anyone would expect him to do. But that doesn't help the mediocrity of the material he's dealing with.
That said, the film gets off to an AMAZING start, with a montage of violence, cool looking gangsters and topless lap dancers blended together in such a fast paced and over the top way you can't wait for what the film will build up to. But just as you think Miike has excelled himself, he slams on the brakes and the film plods along for the remaining 90% of the running time. As I said, Miike throws in gore and sadism but he's merely distracting the viewer; in terms of lifting the film above the boring plot he's squirting a water bottle on an inferno.
It's worth watching. But with plenty of slow, and somewhat boring scenes to cancel out the blood and guts, and a downright retarded ending, don't expect this film to satisfy you.
But if you start looking past the hardcore exterior you may find yourself staring into a void. The plot is pretty standard to anyone familiar with Yakuza films- get hold on money for one thing or another, avoid the vengeful cop, shoot people etc. Sure, Miike over blows the violence by about 900% as anyone would expect him to do. But that doesn't help the mediocrity of the material he's dealing with.
That said, the film gets off to an AMAZING start, with a montage of violence, cool looking gangsters and topless lap dancers blended together in such a fast paced and over the top way you can't wait for what the film will build up to. But just as you think Miike has excelled himself, he slams on the brakes and the film plods along for the remaining 90% of the running time. As I said, Miike throws in gore and sadism but he's merely distracting the viewer; in terms of lifting the film above the boring plot he's squirting a water bottle on an inferno.
It's worth watching. But with plenty of slow, and somewhat boring scenes to cancel out the blood and guts, and a downright retarded ending, don't expect this film to satisfy you.