13 Assassins (2010) Jûsan-nin no shikaku (original title)

Director:

Takashi Miike

Writers:

Kaneo Ikegami (based on a screenplay by)
Daisuke Tengan (screenplay)

Release Date:

25 September 2010 (Japan)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama

Plot:

A group of assassins come together for a suicide mission to kill an evil lord.

Plot Keywords:

Samurai | Suicide | Shogun | Suicide Mission | Lord

Awards:

12 wins & 21 nominations

Cast

Kôji Yakusho	...	Shinzaemon Shimada
Takayuki Yamada	...	Shinrokuro Shimada
Yûsuke Iseya	...	Koyata Kiga
Ikki Sawamura	...	Gunjiro Mitsuhashi
Arata Furuta	...	Heizo Sahara
Sôsuke Takaoka	...	Yasokichi Hioki
Seiji Rokkaku	...	Mosuke Otake
Kazuki Namioka	...	Rihei Ishizuka
Kôen Kondô	...	Yahachi Horii
Yûma Ishigaki	...	Gannai Higuchi
Masataka Kubota	...	Shojiro Ogura
Tsuyoshi Ihara	...	Kujuro Hirayama
Hiroki Matsukata	...	Saheita Kuranaga
Kazue Fukiishi	...	Tsuya / Upashi
Mitsuki Tanimura	...	Chise Makino
Takumi Saitô	...	Uneme Makino
Shinnosuke Abe	...	Genshiro Deguchi
Shôzô Uesugi
Ayumu Saitô
Hajime Inoue
Atsushi Haruta
Yuya Takagawa
Hiroshi Tatsumi
Akemi Sakurai
Sakurako Moteki	...	Amputated Woman
Megumi Kagurazaka	...	Otake
Masaaki Uchino	...	Zusho Mamiya
Ken Mitsuishi	...	Judayu Asakawa
Ittoku Kishibe	...	Village Elder
Mikijirô Hira	...	Sir Doi
Kôshirô Matsumoto	...	Yukie Makino
Gorô Inagaki	...	Lord Naritsugu Matsudaira
Masachika Ichimura	...	Hanbei Kito
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Nizaemon Kataoka

Directed by
Takashi Miike

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Kaneo Ikegami		based on a screenplay by
Daisuke Tengan		screenplay

Produced by
Takashi Hirajô	....	executive producer
Minami Ichikawa	....	producer
Hiroaki Kitano	....	co-executive producer
Tomoko Machida	....	co-executive producer
Shigeji Maeda	....	producer
Toshiaki Nakazawa	....	executive producer
Toshiyasu Ohmiya	....	co-executive producer
Yutaka Ohnishi	....	co-executive producer
Yûji Shimamoto	....	co-executive producer
Yoshinari Shimatani	....	co-executive producer
Tôichirô Shiraishi	....	producer
Kazuomi Susaki	....	co-producer
Jeremy Thomas	....	executive producer
Michio Uematsu	....	co-executive producer
Hisashi Usui	....	co-producer
Michihiko Yanagisawa	....	producer
Kagami Yoshida	....	co-executive producer
Kôji Yoshida	....	producer
Takahiro Ôno	....	producer

Original Music by
Kôji Endô

Cinematography by
Nobuyasu Kita		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Kenji Yamashita

Production Design by
Yuji Hayashida

Costume Design by
Kazuhiro Sawataishi

Sound Department
Daniel Cabrera Majada	....	spanish sap mixer
Daniel Cabrera Majada	....	dubbing mixer (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Natsuko Watanabe	....	compositor

Stunts
Keiji Tsujii	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Yoshimi Watabe	....	gaffer

Casting Department
Emi Fukuda	....	casting coordinator

Other crew
Chiara Gelardin	....	for HanWay Films
Paul Hillier	....	insurance
Alainée Kent	....	development executive: Recorded Picture Company
Jonathan Lynch-Staunton	....	for HanWay Films
Richard Mansell	....	business and legal affairs: Recorded Picture Company
Peter Watson	....	managing director: Recorded Picture Company
Fabien Westerhoff	....	worldwide sales

Production Companies

• Sedic International
• Recorded Picture Company (RPC)
• Asahi Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)
• Asahi Shimbun Newspaper, The
• Dentsu
• Higashinippon Broadcasting Co.
• Hiroshima Home TV
• Hokkaido Television Broadcasting Co. (HTB)
• Kyushu Asahi Broadcasting Co.
• Nagoya Broadcasting Network (NBN)
• Shizuoka Asahi Television Co. (SATV)
• Shogakukan
• TV Asahi
• Toho Company
• Tsutaya Group
• Yahoo Japan

Distributors

• Toho Company (2010) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Alliance (2010) (Canada) (all media) (as '13 Assassins')
• Artificial Eye (2010) (France) (all media)
• BIM Distribuzione (2010) (Italy) (all media)
• CatchPlay (2010) (Taiwan) (all media)
• HanWay Films (2010) (worldwide) (all media)
• Icon Film Distribution (2010) (Australia) (all media)
• Artificial Eye (2011) (UK) (theatrical)
• Avalon Distribución Audiovisual (2011) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Magnet Releasing (2011) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled) (as '13 Assassins')
• Shaw Organisation (2011) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Alliance Films (2011) (Canada) (DVD) (Blu-ray) (as '13 Assassins')
• Alliance Films (2011) (Canada) (DVD) (as '13 Assassins')
• Ascot Elite Home Entertainment (2011) (Germany) (DVD)
• Front Row Filmed Entertainment (2011) (United Arab Emirates) (all media) (Middle East)
• Mediasoft Films (2011) (Korea) (all media)
• Twin Pics (2011) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Avalon Distribución Audiovisual (2012) (Spain) (DVD)
• Film1 (2012) (Netherlands) (TV) (limited)
• Magnolia Home Entertainment (????) (USA) (DVD) (as '13 Assassins')

Special Effects

• OLM Digital (CGI)

Other Companies

• Allan Chapman & James Insurance Brokers  E&O insurance
• Continental Far East  Dolby consultant
• Dolby Laboratories  sound mix
• Griffith  crane and grip equipment supplied by
• Imagica  digital intermediate
• Imagica  film processing
• Kodak Japan  film stock supplied by
• Nihon Shomei Co.  lighting equipment supplied by
• Sanwa Cine Equipment  camera equipment supplied by
• Shonai Film Village Co.  location service

Also Known As:

"Jûsan-nin no shikaku" - Japan (original title)

MPAA:

Rated R for sequences of bloody violence, some disturbing images and brief nudity

Runtime:

141 min | 126 min (International version)

Country:

Japan | UK

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Japan:PG12 | Singapore:NC-16 | USA:R (certificate #46732) | Ireland:16 | UK:15 | Germany:16 | South Korea:18 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Australia:MA15+ | Netherlands:16 | France:U | Hong Kong:III | Spain:16 | Argentina:16

Company:

Sedic International

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Near the end of the movie, at approximately 2:00:15, a character that is supposedly lying dead briefly moves his left leg (at the lower left of the scene).

Quotes:

Lord Naritsugu Matsudaira:Ruling is convenient, but only for rulers. The people must live to serve.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #1.15" (2011)

By far Miike's most outstanding film to date

Having been furious at American cinema for releasing some garbage over the past few years, I have purely focused on international cinema and more so Asian cinema. You would be hard pressed finding better films than what South Korea has to offer. Unless you stumble across 13 Assassins. My god, what an experience. And that is exactly what it is, an experience. Exactly what cinema is meant to be. I will not spoil any part of this film other than saying, if you are sick and tired of the same old melodramatic, over hyped, under performed, over budgeted, egotistical, run of the mil ho hum doldrum from modern day cinema, then you must (and I mean must) see 13 Assassins. This film is a solid entry from Takashi Miike. His previous films were everything from outstanding to bizarre, but this film speaks volumes. It is a film reminiscent of 7 Samurai, brilliantly executed. Takashi Miike has certainly matured in his vision, bringing to the screen an instant classic. Tell your people, friends, family, scream it from the rooftops.....13 Assassins is brilliant! Now, how long will it take Hollywood to bastardize this film?