Ryu san (2017)

Professional hitman Long takes on an assignment in Japan. When things go awry, he has to flee. Badly injured, he takes refuge in a deserted part of a small town.

Director:

SABU

Writer:

SABU

Stars:

Chen Chang, Shô Aoyagi, Yi Ti Yao

2 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Chen Chang	...	Long
Shô Aoyagi	...	Kenji
Yi Ti Yao	...	Lily
Run-yin Bai	...	Jun
Masashi Arifuku	...	Heisuke
Tarô Suwa	...	Tadao
Ritsuko Ohkusa	...	Kumiko
Shiiko Utagawa	...	Machiko
Yûsuke Fukuchi	...	Jiang
Tetsuya Chiba	...	Sakata
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Yasunari Takeshima	...	Office worker

Storyline

A Taiwanese hit-man goes Japan to kill a man. But nothing turns out in the way he expected. He finds himself in a dumpster and with neighbors' helps he gets his own stall where he cooks delicious noodles. But his past won't leave him alone.

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Plot Keywords:

cook | hitman | street fight | drug dealer | forced prostitution | 

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

Japan Hong Kong Taiwan

Language:

Mandarin Japanese Min Nan

Release Date:

16 December 2017 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Mr. Long

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

129 min

Color:

Color

User Reviews

Genres - Gotta Catch 'Em All

Mr. Long (Chen Chang) is a highly successful knife assassin working for a Taiwanese crime boss. A job in Japan goes sideways and he's forced to hide in the slums of the city to avoid capture by his would-be targets, psychotic criminals in their own right.

And from that we get one of the weirdest examples of the fact that it's not always a bad thing to straddle genre lines. Because this film goes from a straightforward Asian action blast to a nihilist drug drama to a sappy romantic comedy, and then all back again. And yes, it is jarring from time to time, but it's meant to be. Life goes from incredibly sappy to gut-wrenching sadness, and sometimes it does so with no warning whatsoever.

It also helps to have such a crew behind this genre hopping. SABU, the director, has a reputation as a storyteller of the bizarre, this film being a fine example of that. Chen Chang also shines as the silent main protagonist. Long is a man of few words, but this merely enhances his performance, affording him an aura of mystery, danger and solution.

Is the film for everyone? No, it's not. Is it a bit artsy? Kinda. Is it really good? Absolutely.