The City of Lost Souls (2000)

Violent gangster movie with a Brazilian protagonist.

Director:

Takashi Miike

Writers:

Seishu Hase (novel), Toshiki Kimura (as Ichiro Ryu)

Stars:

Teah, Michelle Reis, Kôji Kikkawa

Cast

Credited cast:
Teah	...	Mario
Michelle Reis	...	Kei
Patricia Manterola	...	Lucia
Mitsuhiro Oikawa	...	Ko
Kôji Kikkawa	...	Fushimi
Ren Osugi	...	(as Ren Ôsugi)
Akaji Maro
Anatoli Krasnov	...	Khodoloskii
Sebastian DeVicente	...	Rikardo
Terence Yin	...	Riku
Atsushi Okuno	...	Carlos
Akira Emoto	...	Kuwata
Eugene Nomura	...	Yamazaki
Marcio Rosario	...	Sanchez
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Masa Kanome	...	Young Lover

Storyline

Japanese-Brazilian Mario and Chinese hairdresser Kei are lovers. Kei is about to be deported. He manages to escape. His plan is to get passports and stow away on a ship headed for a foreign country. With his girlfriend he tries to steal money from the mafia. Instead he gets cocaine which he sells. But Kei is captured by Yakuza and he must save her...

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Plot Keywords:

cocaine | yakuza | brazilian | violence | bullet time | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong brutal violence, language, sex and drug content

Did You Know?

Connections

Spoofs The Matrix (1999)

User Reviews

You can't go wrong with Miike

City of Lost Souls, aka Hazard City, is pretty self explanatory from the title. The characters in the movie seem lost and there are dangers lurking around every corner. Who can you trust not to blast one in your back? Well, with Takashi Miike, trust nobody.

I noticed that the cast was a mix of japanese, chinese, and brazilian! It caught my attention when I would hear portugeuse being spoken, then japanese later on. I noticed that Miike included the different languages rather than having it all in japanese which made the film seem more real. Oh, let me say that that's one wacky wedding scene! There are some surprising moments too...which you'll see when you watch the film (no fair in me telling!).

The interactions between the characters seem so random that I felt there really was no good or bad sides. I loved the vodka scene with Michelle Reis who was visually stunning throughout. Plus, Teah plays the cool, suave Mario who speaks through actions rather than dialogue. Also, that yakuza guy is someone you do not mess with!!

Thank you Miike for a unique ending which surprised my friend and I...or maybe it was the Remy Red shots that left me saying "HUH??" I guess I'll have to watch it again....which is a good thing.

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

English Mandarin Russian Japanese Portuguese Cantonese

Release Date:

8 August 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

The City of Lost Souls

Filming Locations:

Japan

Box Office

Budget:

JPY2,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Daiei, Tohokushinsha Film Corporation (TFC), Tokuma Shoten

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1