Kumo no hitomi (1998)

A man discovers a darker side of himself after exacting revenge on his daughter's killer.

Director:

Kiyoshi Kurosawa

Writers:

Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Yôichi Nishiyama (as Yoichi Noshiyama)

Stars:

Shô Aikawa, Duncan, Ren Osugi

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Shô Aikawa	...	Naomi Niijima
Duncan	...	Iwamatsu (as Dankan)
Ren Osugi	...	Yoda (as Ren Ôsugi)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Sadao Abe	...	Hoshi
Satoshi Kajiwara	...	Maeda
Kumi Nakamura	...	Noriko Niijima
Moe Sakura	...	Miki
Shun Sugata	...	Hinuma
Tarô Suwa	...	Yakuza Boss being chased on country road
Susumu Terajima	...	Avenging Man

Storyline

A man discovers a darker side of himself after exacting revenge on his daughter's killer.

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Genres:

Crime | Thriller

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Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

11 April 1998 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Eyes of the Spider

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

User Reviews

Kurosawa classic

This is a grim, cleverly plotted revenge story from Kiyoshi Kurosawa - and aside from his brilliant Cure, perhaps his best film. On the surface, it's an uncompromising story of revenge. When a man loses his daughter in a brutal attack, the father connects with a man, a mathematician, clear-minded enough to help him have his revenge. But murder would be too easy; and that's where the cold, calculated tale takes unusual turns.

Kurosawa (no relation to Akira) sets his story in a drab, unflattering version of Japan where mercy is a rare commodity. In fact, the hallmarks of an Akira Kurosawa film - humanism, literacy, grand visuals - are mostly inverted. The antagonist is caught in the first few minutes, so the remainder of the film is a penetrating psychological study that's sometimes also cruel. At the same time, the director uses the template of a standard revenge story to explore something wider and deeper, and it's thrilling to watch the tale unfold. There's no musical soundtrack, no "feel-good" comic moments to escape into; it's as cold as it fascinating, all the more amazing for its unwillingness to compromise. It's not a typical revenger, and it's all the more exciting because of it. First rate.