In the year 2084, when humanity is decimated by a ruthless alien force, all hope lies in Milly (Anne Suzuki), a hardened young soldier, as she goes back in time to stop the invasion before it's too late. Ending up in present-day 2002, she appears in the middle of a gunfight as Miyamoto (Takeshi Kaneshiro), a mysterious mercenary, is breaking up a child-slave ring headed by Mizoguchi (Goro Kishitani), a ruthless Triad member with an uncanny thirst for blood. With bullets flying left and right,
Milly is shot by Miyamoto and is brought into his secretive ring of do-gooding with the smart-mouthed Kirin Kiki, an arms-dealing old woman that's helping Miyamoto on his quest for revenge against Mizoguchi. Through some coercing (by the form of a small, explosive device the size of a band-aid on his neck), Miyamoto unwillingly joins the mission, as they infiltrate the government base that holds a captured alien and its crashed spacecraft -- the first contact that eventually brings on the invasion. With Mizoguchi and the Triads moving in, seeking some of the alien advanced weaponry, Miyamoto may finally get the vengeance he seeks as Milly gets closer and closer to saving the entire human race. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi
The real reason to see this film is the scrappy rapport between Kaneshiro and Suzuki. They are so good together, you won't know whether to cheer or cry.
Returner goes on far longer than such a derivative movie has a right to, but it maintains enough of a balance between its human elements and its propulsive action sequences to keep us going.
Ransacking films like Independence Day for ideas is one thing. Restaging E.T. The Extraterrestrial, right down to the cuddly alien, is another matter entirely.
This Japanese sci-fi action thriller may lack originality but it still manages to be a very entertaining movie! The story consists of a young woman from a war-torn future who travels back in time 82 years to 2002 to prevent an alien invasion of earth summoning the help of a local hitman. It's got some super-cool action
sequences and fairly decent special-effects. The bad guy is absolutely ruthless and the heroes are likable and excell in ass-kickery. It's Takeshi Kaneshiro at his most coolest! A must-see for sci-fi action fans.
February 1, 2011
Lee ?
Super Reviewer
A young woman returns from the future and enlists the unwilling help of a hitman to stop an alien invasion. The Terminator meets Independence Day with a dash of Transformers in a highly derivative but fun pulp sci-fi actioner. It borrows heavily from a lot of sources and the effects can occasionally feel a little
"Stargate SG-1" but the likable leads and inventive visuals mean it is still very entertaining. There's the usual high octane martial arts mixed with future technology giving an excuse for some bullet-time acrobatics and Goro Kishitani makes an amusingly over the top villain. If the time travel paradox twist had been used with a little more imagination it could've been brilliant, but as it stands it's an undemandingly fun sci-fi actioner in the mold of Ryuhei Kitamura.
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