Movie Info:
Director: Shinji Higuchi
Cast: Jun Matsumoto, Masami Nagasawa, Kippei Shiina, Daisuke Miyagawa, Masahiro Kômoto, Katsuhisa Namase
Original Title: Kakushi toride no san akunin
Production Country: Japan 2008

Review:
Shinji Higuchi’s Hidden Fortress: The Last Princess is a prime example of what I have begun to refer to as the Dororo Syndrome. That is to say that - like far too many recent Japanese blockbusters - it starts with a lone notable cast member - in this case the always charismatic Hiroshi Abe - surrounds them with a cast of musicians and TV stars and then ramps up the special effects and massive sets hoping that it will distract the audience from the fact that there isn’t a whole lot of script present. This is the sort of film where - quite literally - one of the major characters is caught precisely in the middle of an explosion strong enough to level a mountain and yet manages to ride away without a scratch. While also somehow saving one of the other principal characters. Logical? Not so much. But that said, if you’re in the mood for some mindless action and are able to block out any comparisons to the Akira Kurosawa film that this is based upon it is not entirely without its charms.
Nagasawa Masami is Princess Yuki, the sole member of the royal family to survive when her kingdom is attacked by neighboring forces. Yuki’s only hope is to escape to a nearby allied land with her secret stash of gold so that she can rebuild her forces. It will not be an easy trip, however, as her forces are decimated and she has only her loyal guard - General Rokurota, played by Hiroshi Abe - and a pair of rogue peasants to help her on her way. Surprisingly, the plan for escape comes from one of those peasants, a native of the attacking nation. The border to your ally will be heavily guarded, he argues, but I know the path to safety through my homeland and they’d never expect us to go that way. And so, with the promise of a reward on successful completion of the mission, the peasants agree to lead the princess deep into enemy territory.
A true classic of world cinema, Akira Kurosawa’s original Hidden Fortress later served as one of the main building blocks for the original Star Wars, a fact director Shinji Higuchi a very obviously aware of here. References to Star Wars are as plentiful throughout this film as are references to the original Japanese version, in the form of everything from the glimmering effects overlaid on Rokutoro’s sword, an evil general clearly modeled on Darth Vader, and the final assault - and conclusion of said assault - on a massive, secret enemy fortress being built to attack the princess’ sole remaining allied nation. Tracking which characters are based on which is actually one of the primary charms of the film, as key characteristics are often spread throughout multiple characters: Rokutoro is both Obi Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker, the peasants together are the droid pair C3P0 and R2D2, while the lead peasant solo is a blend of Skywalker and Han Solo, etc etc.
Higuchi has his origins as one of Japan’s leading effects men and that shows in both positive and negative ways. The look of the film is impressive, the world large and compelling and the action impressive and, on occasion, impressively bloody. But, after a career of being trained to think only of what he needs to get the visuals right Higuchi still has problems when it comes to character. Lots of problems. All of the principals are dramatically underwritten and while Hiroshi Abe has enough natural charisma to get by on that alone the rest of the cast generally does not and, too frequently, they are left as little more than props being pushed through Higuchi’s scenes. Logic is frequently abandoned - as in the aforementioned massive explosion - and key character moments are clumsy and steeped in soppy melodrama.
A worthy successor to the original film? Not so much. Kurosawa’s original is legendary, a status this film will never achieve. A decent piece of entertainment? In fits and starts, yes, provided your willing to simply skim across the surface of the film and enjoy the visuals and set pieces. Try to dig any deeper and things fall apart quickly but Hiuchi has certainly buffed things up to a glossy sheen.

LANGUAGE: Japanese
SUBTITLE: none
DVDRiP
avi
ca. 118 min
730 mb

PW: malamute

http://secured.in/download-299780-29ab6d3a.html