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100
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San Francisco Chronicle Wesley Morris
A further, captivating extension of Oshima's marriage of the oblique and the erotic.
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90
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Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas
It takes a director with exceptional talent, skill and experience to explore ambiguity in all aspects of human nature and behavior, and Oshima has created a film of resilient, downright tensile strength that ends on a satisfyingly ironic note.
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80
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The New York Times Stephen Holden
Illustrates the underlying fear that when energies that should be directed toward warfare are diverted into passion, unity is impossible.
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80
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Mr. Showbiz Michael Atkinson
Emblematic of the man's (Oshima) career: ironic, ambiguous, sublime.
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75
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Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Oshima, directing his first film in 14 years, has found an actor with the physical attributes to play the character and seems content to leave it at that; his camera regards Sozaburo as an object of beauty but hardly seems to engage him.
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75
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Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea
Ripe with homoeroticism, but also with what the director - who made the film after recovering from a stroke a few years back - calls "the scent of murder."
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75
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New York Daily News Jami Bernard
Impressionistic and open to interpretation, which is a kind way of saying that there's no way to figure out the ending.
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75
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Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt
The movie's most striking assets are its lyrical visual style, which forms a silky counterpoint to the plot's turbulent emotions, and Beat Takeshi's smooth and expressive performance as a senior warrior.
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75
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New York Post Jonathan Foreman
It's actually the surprisingly compelling plot and the often hilarious dialogue that keep you watching this tale of passion and murder in a Samurai militia unit - not the beautiful scenery or the elegant color palette.
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63
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Boston Globe Loren King
The intriguing subject, unfortunately, collapses under too many talky scenes of the samurai discussing their feelings and gossiping about who loves whom.
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