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So much average

Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

Fresh and Exciting

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

I picked up this movie with the thought that it would be a low-grade campy, poorly written, poorly acted, and poorly shot horror film, but it would at least be entertaining.I was right about everything but the last bit.There is nothing redeeming about this movie. The action sequences are awful, looking as though they were choreographed by a drunk homeless man the crew picked up off the streets of Tokyo. The writing is done in similar fashion, though perhaps "drunk homeless man" gives too much credit to the writing team. They may have taken the "100 monkeys at typewriters" metaphor literally, because that is the only remotely feasible explanation I can come up with for this nonsense. The acting is terrible, with the title character looking like constipated cardboard 95% of the time and looking like the East Bunny with Dracula fangs the other 5% (more on that travesty later.).The movie itself resembles nothing more than a series of poorly edited clips that aren't even cut together in the correct order. There are several moments where something like this will happen: a character will fall over with no bullet wound, there will be a close-up shot of a gun firing, then another view of the dead character (now complete with gunshot wound to the head) in a totally different room than the one that they died in, in a completely different position! Also, the movie looks as though it were assembled of entirely first takes. There looks to be absolutely no effort and even less talent on the part of the camera/directing crew.The final nail in the coffin has got to be the horrendous "special" effects. Bottle rockets for bullets. These "bullets" actually caused the only laugh for me in this movie as they were ricocheting off of the PAPER WALLS. Plastic skeletons. Rubber monsters. Sword sound effects that sound as though they were ripped straight from the first season of the "Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers" TV show. Gallons of fake blood erupting out of the most ridiculous places. While excessive blood is usually funny in a movie of this style, in this case it feels as though they are trying to pass it off as serious. Never a good thing. Lastly, this ridiculous "werewolf" suit that resembles nothing so much as a mange-ridden Easter Bunny with Dracula fangs.If I could rate this movie lower than a 1, I would.

Directed by Tomoo Haraguchi "Kibakichi" is an entertaining piece of samurai goodness. Using a traditional Kurosawaesque plot, throwing some fantasy/horror elements, some decent amount of gore and you get 90 minutes of exploitation cinema with a moral. Fun stuff.Samurai werewolf Kibakichi wonders into an old town populated by Yokai (Japanese demons) and aids them against the treacherous humans trying to destroy them. And there you have it, the plot in one sentence. Of course there's more to it, as first Kibakichi questions the morality of the Yokai(they eat humans). Must deal with some personal issues in a subplot that is left unresolved. Must be moved by the Yokai's peaceful ways (sort of) and the bond they share. Must decide to leave town. Must hear the evil human traitors arrive in town with their samurai and machine guns. Must go slaughter humans in full kill mode.It's a fun film, a remainder of the 70s and 80s chambara flicks, where gore and fantasy elements mingled together creating some ludicrously fun action scenes. Choreography and sword play are decent enough and Haraguchi shot those scenes well enough. The gore is cheesy, blood fountains are cool, but it's the creature design that really shines. Reminiscent of the old monster movies, they are what sets Kibakichi apart and are really enjoyable in a B-movie kinda way. And did I mention machine guns? Yes I think I did, but for those of you not listening, there are machine guns here, more like mini-guns to be precise and that is so cool. We can talk about acting, but that's not really a point in these kind of films. Yes you get this kind of in your face melodrama, but it's not all too unbearable plus the film isn't really marketed as an emotional experience. Otherwise the acting was fairly decent meaning it doesn't get all too annoying.Although in it's core "Kibakichi" is a cheesy samurai/monster film, it does tackle the issue of racism well enough. Specifically racism in Japanese society which, let's face it, even today is obviously present with foreigners and Japanese of mixed blood living in Japan don't get always get equal treatment.If you're in the mood for a high powered, kick ass, samurai exploitation flick, then Kibakichi is a good recommendation. Tomoo Haraguchi did well with this film, here's hoping the sequel is as good as this one

For quite a while humans and the Yokai shape-shifting monsters were able to live in harmony. But, soon the racist humans wanted the Yokai out of the equation with war sending the monsters into exile. Master Onizo wishes for harmony to exist once again and has benefited from what he believed was a satisfying relationship with Yamayi-sama, a leader-on-the-rise for the humans hoping to win a place in the hierarchy of the Lord. To decidedly earn a high position, Yamayi-sama plans to wipe out the Yokai remaining alive under Onizo's clan, betraying his trust and ruining his vision of peace. Kikio, a human, is actually Onizo's woman and a picture of beauty who is spiritually driven often seen on her knees praying. Enter in the Yokai Samurai warrior Kibakichi(Ryuuji Harada whose penetrating anguished eyes peer from a mass of hair)who is a loner often living amongst the humans, who now hates them with a prolonging passion. He trusted them once, like Onizo does now, and paid the price for it costing the lives of an entire peaceful village of hidden Yokai who were wiped out by the blind-sided human attack. Kibakichi makes his way into the clan of Onizo, whose major interest to the outside world is his illegal gambling table. In an interesting note, various Yokai killers, often find their way into secret rooms by Onizo where they are killed by the monsters. Kibakichi tries desperately to warn Onizo and his men against trusting Yamayi-sama, but the unrelenting hope for peace against the endless violence is all the boss is consumed with. As one would expect, Yamayi-sama does plan to attack what he considers a thorn in his side and that would be Onizo's village using more modern weaponry brought in from England..a massive rotating machine gun that will eliminate the more primitive foes who merely use swords. Dubbing it the end result a massacre, would be an understatement. But, when you unleash the beast within Kibakichi all the machine guns, men, and grenades may not stop him.A stunning film, featuring some amazing swordplay, beautiful photography and lighting(I adore how Tomoo Haraguchi and cinematographer Shôji Ebara hit a patch of light on characters' faces as they sit amongst darkened rooms and also shade their monsters only giving the viewer enough during a portion of the film to know that they are not human), and some gut-wrenching gore. Lots of decapitated heads and arms, blood that squirts in endless supplies as complete arms are sliced off. One sequence shows, in Kibakichi's opening battle, a sword sticking in the ground with a chopped off hand still clutching it! Kibakichi is essentially a werewolf, but director Haraguchi waits to unveil that beast late in the major showdown when the humans try to hit him with everything they got. Nozomi Andô as Onizo's human love Kikyo is very beautiful underneath a quiet exterior.I watched the subtitled version, so I saw the best the film could offer me. I know it's received some criticism on here, but I had one hell of a good time with this flick. The monster battle at the end and the intense gunfire exploding all around Kibakichi in werewolf form as the city is destroyed around him are amazing action set-pieces. Highly recommended to those with fairly strong stomachs.

I bought the DVD of Kibakichi, used from Blockbuster, simply on a whim. My friends and I were sifting through the racks when the unusual title caught my eye. As soon as I read the summary on the backcover I had to get it! Werewolf samurai? Demonic geishas? Come on, this had to be the most unique film ever created! This film will definitely not appeal to everybody. I'm a hardcore fan of both samurai flicks and anime, so it probably appealed to me more than most people. The atmosphere of this film is perfect for the mysterious setting (the weather is almost always dark, overcast, and windy). Acting is subdued (you won't find William Shatner here), but strong and suitable for the type of characters involved. The special effects are laughably low-budget, which adds a nice, campy feel to the whole production. One can forgive the shoddy sfx, however, because they supply the only real laughs in the movie. The final battle scene alone is worth the money of buying or renting it. I guarantee that it is something that you have never seen before and never will again. Strangely enough, the werewolf samurai only transforms once, and not during a full-moon either. Only when he is unable to keep his emotions under control. The bottom line is that this is a very cool, very interesting film that very few people on this side of the Pacific will see. If you like samurai flicks, the fantasy genre, Japanese period films, the supernatural, or are just feeling adventurous, check this one out. Even if you normally watch only conventional Hollywood fare you should give this a go. It'll give you something new to think about (or at least some pretty freakish dreams).