Sky High (2003)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Ryuhei Kitamura

Writers:

Tsutomu Takahashi (comic book)
Isao Kiriyama (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

5 December 2003 (Japan)

Genre:

Fantasy | Mystery | Action | Horror

Plot:

A serial-murderer is removing his victims hearts and taking them with him. Kanzaki is a detective on the case...

Plot Keywords:

Good Versus Evil | Katana | Katana Sword | Manga | Based On Comic

Cast

Yumiko Shaku	...	Mina Saeki / Izuko (new Izuko)
Takao Osawa	...	Tatsuya Kudo
Shosuke Tanihara	...	Kohei Kanzaki
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Yuka Itaya
Yumi Kikuchi	...	Shuho Kamiina
Kazuki Kitamura
Aya Okamoto
Masato Sakai
Eihi Shiina	...	Izuko
Hiromasa Taguchi	...	Kazuo Kishi
Naho Toda	...	Kyoko Aoyama
Maiko Yamada
Kimika Yoshino

MPAA:

Rated R for violent content.

Runtime:

Japan:122 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Certification:

Germany:16 | Singapore:PG | UK:15 | USA:R

Company:

Toei Company

Quotes:

Kanzaki: I'll go to the gate.
Kishi: Huh?
Kanzaki: It's the only way I can stop Kudo...
Kamiina: Yes. Is that your choice?
Unknown: What are you talking about? Are you both crazy?
Kanzaki: Crazy as it may be... if it's the only way to save Mina, then I'll go.
Kamiina: [hands Kanzaki a gun] Take this.
Kanzaki: [Kanzaki takes the gun, and looks at Kishi] Shoot me.
Unknown: [Kishi hesitantly raises his gun to Kanzaki] Don't! Death is the end of everything! Kishi! DON'T!
Kishi: [lowers gun] I can't do it!
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Capitalism: The Movie (2008)

A good mix of action, fantasy and horror...

Japanese director Ryuhei Kitamura became a household name for horror fans after the success of his epic mix of action and horror named "Versus" back in the year 2000. After that big hit, Kitamura showed his talent for film-making with films like "Alive" and "Aragami", movies where he continued demonstrating a very fresh and effective style clearly influenced by the Japanese comic books (Mangas). His style would reach a peak with the epic "Azumi", a film that many of his followers consider a masterpiece. Following that huge success, Kitamura is back with another story based on a comic book, "Sky High", another epic action film that mixes horror and romance in a story that serves as follow-up to the TV series "Sukai Hai", which he also directed.

"Sky High" is the story of detective Kohei Kanzaki (Shosuke Tanihara) and his bride Mina Saeki (Yumiko Shaku), and how their lives get shattered when on the day of their wedding, Mina is brutally killed by the mysterious serial killer that Kanzaki was trying to arrest. Now, Mina goes to the Gate of Rage, the place where the souls of all the murdered people go to make an important choice: whether to go to Heaven and expect the next rebirth, return to the Earth as a ghost, or to curse the killer and go to hell with him. Mina has 12 days to decide, but in the meantime, she decides to attempt to help Kanzaki to regain sanity, as Kanzaki is now decided to kill the assassin even if that means going to Hell for his sin.

To tell the truth, the plot outline written above is really just the beginning of the extensive plot of "Sky High". Based on the comic book by Tsutomu Takahashi, the script (by Isao Kiriyama) starts off with Kanzaki's attempt for revenge, but also includes Mina's own story at the Gates of Rage, as well as the confrontations with the main villain as his identity and motivations are revealed. Kiriyama's script is very well-detailed and multi-layered, with basically every character having a meaning in this epic story of horror and fantasy. Fortunately, there is no need of having watch "Sukai Hai" before, as the movie stands on its own without problems.

Once again Kitamura displays his mastery of the visual flare as the film is filled with an energetic camera-work and remarkably done action set-pieces. Kitamura gives flesh to Kiriyama's screenplay in the same way as if he was drawing a comic book, giving chance to his imagination to fly by keeping true to the essence of the "Sky High" story. While it's true that "Sky High" is considerably less violent graphically than Kitamura's previous films "Versus" and "Azumi", this choice fits the stylish concept of the film, as despite all the visual eye-candy, it remains focused on the relationship between its two main characters, and an excess in gore would feel out of place.

The cast ranges from average to good, but for the most part one can say that the work of the cast is effective. Yumiko Shaku delivers a good performance as Mina, and proves to be a good dramatic actress. However, her action scenes seemed a bit weaker when compared to other actors in the film. Shosuke Tanihara delivers the best acting of the movie, as he carries the film with a great attitude and a believable delivery of the part. Finally, Kitamura's regular collaborator Takao Osawa is excellent as the mysterious Tatsuya Kudo. As written above, the rest of the cast is mostly good, but nothing really spectacular, although the action scenes are excellently choreographed and performed.

While the movie is set to be another of Kitamura's masterpieces, this time the movie feels a bit weaker as Kitamura's usual problem looks a bit bigger in this project. This main problem is that the film is a bit overlong, mainly due to the excessive detail that writer Kiriyama gives to the story. Unlike in "Azumi" (also scripted by Kiriyama), where the epic approach suited a long and detailed script, here the story just feels overlong, and at times seriously drags a lot. Probably the real source of the problem is the way the film seems to take itself too serious at times, but the fact remains that "Sky High" is a good film, that could had been a lot more.

In the end, "Sky High" is still a very recommended movie, not only for die hard Kitamura fans, but for every fan of action films. The touches of horror and fantasy give the story more depth and make it stand out among the many Martial Arts movies out there. It's really a very good, albeit flawed, film that can deliver great entertainment when watched on the right mood. 7/10