Yôkai daisensô (The Great Yokai War) (2005)
Average Rating: 5.7/10
Reviews Counted: 16
Fresh: 11 | Rotten: 5
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 5.2/10
Critic Reviews: 6
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 3
No consensus yet.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 3,194
My Rating
Movie Info
A group of grotesque supernatural creatures from Japanese folklore enlist the aid of a young boy recently bestowed with the title of Kirin Rider in defeating a powerful dark overlord who preys on humans and monsters alike in this kid-friendly fantasy from Takashi Miike. As a series of bizarre supernatural incidents plague the Japanese countryside and scores of children go missing, a mysterious series of mechanical monster attacks led by a dark mistress (Chiaki Kuriyama) sends the country into a
Cast
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Bunta Sugawara
Takashi's Grandfater -
Kaho Minami
Takashi's Mother -
Etsushi Toyokawa
Kato -
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Ryunosuke Kamiki
Takashi -
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All Critics (17) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (13) | Rotten (5) | DVD (6)
This noisy, effects-crazed PG-13 adventure might work for 10 year-olds who are beyond Nickelodeon piffle and ready for Japanese splatter.
Top CriticWith its scenes of mass destruction in Tokyo and its climactic mushroom cloud, the movie owes a psychic debt to the atomic-monster movies of the 50s and 60s, but its overriding tone is one of endless, giddy invention.
... Miike's epic undertaking is probably best appreciated as the first stab at a live-action version of a Hayao Miyazaki ecologically minded extravaganza like Princess Mononoke.
Takashi Miike's excursion into extravagant and demented fantasy combines folkloric elements with images from contemporary Japanese popular culture.
The film makes no more or less sense than Ridley Scott's Legend or Jim Henson's Labyrinth, and in fact has a creaky, blue-gel '80s-ness to it, but for many, keeping up with Miike's cranked output is an end in itself.
Odd blend of the truly cheesy with a few genuine f/x makes for a cutesy if not exactly thrilling spectacle.
The Yokai War, when it finally comes, is pretty near an unmitigated disaster, filled with silly special effects and sillier action.
It's just twisted enough to be worth a look.
At just over two slow-moving hours, this picture might well outlast the narrow audience at which it's aimed-very young kids who can read subtitles quickly.
Miike's inventive and old-fashioned way of filmmaking has an odd and special charm that makes the movie a delight to watch.
Its warmth and silliness are distracting enough, even when the plot fails.
Imagine Kwaidan cross-bred with The NeverEnding Story and directed by Terry Gilliam.
This is a wild adventure that is not always easy to follow, but it is a font of comedy and macabre imagination with a wonderful Japanese flavor.
The end product packs enough punch to please both children and Miike fans alike. That in itself is a great achievment.
A fable of childhood's end with monsters, Miike's goofy, gallant, action-packed fantasy deserves to become a classic family film.
A children's film--with a difference.
It's like a live-action Hayao Miyazaki film. It's an indescribable, hilarious and insane piece of work that also has a refreshingly old-school feel to it.
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Foreign Titles
- The Great Yokai War (Yokai daisenso) (DE)
- The Great Yokai War (Yokai daisenso) (UK)
I must say for the first time we see Miike creative detail come right out of him when he is no dreaming up the most disgusting way to die, these creatures no doubt came from Japanese's mythology (I myself am Korean) to bring this spectacular that no doubt can prove that Miyazaki isn't the only one around with talent.
A young boy is moving because of his parents divorce and they stop at a festival where for some reason he is chosen to be a "Kirin Rider" to protect all things that are good. And he himself must lead this war in the spirited world against all things that are evil even though he himself wants nothing to do with it.
It is like something Miyazaki would make with all the detail and designs on creatures though its not animated. And I think Miike himself drew all this himself which proves he doesn't have that much of a messed up mind. The creatures them selves are frighting yet some are really amazing looking "but still can be strange"
The prove they can act I admit but it isn't always strong most times. The visuals are breathtaking but it always proves that a film doesn't always have to be on CGI. This movie does something different when it comes to that.
The last thing I will see is the music really good and I think that's it. Where the hell was this movie when I was young?
Come to a close and I say see it if you love this stuff. Still one of the trippiest things i have seen, An acid trip you would fuck you up while watching this.