Ritana (2002)

Director:

Takashi Yamazaki

Writers:

Kenya Hirata (writer)
Takashi Yamazaki (writer)

Release Date:

31 August 2002 (Japan)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Who cares about the future?

Plot:

A young woman from the future forces a local gunman to help her stop an impending alien invasion which will wipe out the human race.

Plot Keywords:

Alien | Alien Invasion | Dodging Bullets | Murder | End Of The World

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Takeshi Kaneshiro	...	Miyamoto
Anne Suzuki	...	Milly
Kirin Kiki	...	Xie
Gorô Kishitani	...	Mizoguchi
Yukiko Okamoto	...	Dr. Yagi
Mitsuru Murata	...	Mizoguchi's Henchman
Kisuke Iida	...	Karasawa, Mizoguchi's Henchman
Kazuya Shimizu	...	Murakami, Mizoguchi's Henchman
Chiharu Kawai	...	Liu's Interpreter
Dean Harrington	...	Dr. Brown
Xiaoqun Zhao	...	Slave Merchant
Masaya Takahashi	...	Liu Laoban, Chinese Godfather
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ahmad Ali	...	Future Soldier
Ari Andres	...	Future Technician
Byron Baron	...	Future Soldier
Bernard Beardsley	...	Future Soldier
Buruna	...	Future Soldier
Francisco Gala	...	Future Soldier
Ryan Hill	...	Future Technician
Kanata Hongô	...	Young Miyamoto
Hoshi Ishida
Semenov Ivan	...	Future Technician
Kenji Motomiya	...	Mizoguchi's Henchman
Misako Nagashima
Shûgo Oshinari	...	Shooter
Kristie Protacio	...	Future Technician
Eric Robinson	...	Future Technician
Sean Ryan	...	Future Soldier
Steve Ryan	...	Future Soldier
Soltane M. Salah	...	Future Soldier
Nejat Shanino	...	Future Soldier
Laura Windrath	...	Future Technician (as Laura Windrash)

Also Known As:

Returner (USA)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence. (also edited version)

Runtime:

USA:116 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Mandarin | Japanese | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (video rating) | UK:15 | Malaysia:18SG | Malaysia:U (cut) | Iceland:16 | Argentina:13 | Germany:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:18 | Australia:MA

Filming Locations:

Himeji, Japan

Company:

Amuse

Trivia:

The small submachine guns used in the future scenes are FN P90s.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the highway chase when the car is blown into the air and falls back down, the cable that was used by the crane to lift the car up into the air so they could drop it again is visible as the vehicle crashes to the ground.

Movie Connections:

References Independence Day (1996)

Soundtrack:

Dig In

One of the better recent Japanese live-action movies

Having read a few online reviews of this movie, and having seen some of the more recent movies out of Japan including Batoru rowaiaru (2000), my expectatations were low. (Battle Royale is for the most part a good movie, but enjoyment of the movie is ultimately crippled by a truly lousy ending.) For some reason, recent Japanese live-action movies tend to be really bad, while anime is often very good.

This movie was a pleasant surprise. It didn't rip off other movies nearly as much as I was led to believe. True, some of the special effects resembled those in The Matrix, but they helped advance this movie instead of being a way to try to make the movie seem more "cool."

The character of Mizoguchi, played by Goro Kishitani, resembled Gary Oldman's parts in a number of films including Fifth Element, The (1997) and Léon (1994). The acting by Takeshi Kaneshiro as Miyamoto was good, but the standout of the movie was the cute-as-a-button Ann Suzuki as the serious, fun, energetic, and rebellious Miri.

The CG of aliens disguised as terran aircraft transforming into their true forms was impressive, resembling the work done in Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) and Independence Day (1996). This is a movie not to be missed by CG buffs.

With the recent shortage of good live-action movies coming out of Japan, The Returner is one of the best to come out within the last few years.