Mijamoto Musaši

I haven't read Yoshikawa Eiji's book, but with the number of pages it has, I wonder what they left out? Whatever it is, I couldn't tell that anything was missing. The plot flowed nicely and was interesting, the acting was great to the point of forcing you to just sit on your butt and watch. What I enjoyed most were the moments, the images where the audience had to figure out themselves and everything wasn’t laid out in detail the way it usually is (see for example Musashi's clenched fist when he meets Otsu again, that's when KimuTaku really and permanently convinced me that he can act; on the other hand, he did recently convince me that he can't sing... so at least he’s got something). Speaking of Otsu – Maki Yōko definitely deserves more attention for her performance; she was a joy to watch (and not just because she has a pretty face). Plus, it's much more romantic than I expected, so I was pleasantly surprised. Of course there was none of the melodrama ala Korean historical soap operas. It's a beautiful story with no pretense, with killing and an effort to understand what it means to be human. Moreover, it's all set in a very appealing environment. I liked the fight choreography very much, with only a few exceptions it felt very real and at times almost overwhelming. Especially in the second part, where Musashi and Kojiro fought side by side. You’re almost sorry that it ends with their legendary "paddle" duel. I think this is one of those films that can be shown to someone who has no idea about Japan. I definitely recommend watching it, and feel free to let me know how you liked it if you don't post it here, I'd be quite interested in your thoughts. :-) A better 4 stars. (04/05/2014)