review   Returner   HH1/2   Rated: R for violence   Cast: Takeshi Kaneshiro, Ann Suzuki, Kirin Kiki, Goro Kishitani   Director: Takashi Yamazaki   Family call: There is lots of   violence.   Running time: 118 minutes   Et cetera: In Japanese, with English subtitles   Playing at: The Loft

All the characters in the ultraviolent Japanese film noir "Returner" ratchet up the supercool-assassin verve to the max. They run around in black leather and strike poses before they blow their enemies away. They carry a detached wit that gives them an air of untouchability. They even follow successful kills with cruel gloating: "Please be quiet," a crime boss says after laying waste to an enemy. Heck, these guys are so hip, if they ran a nightclub, the doorman would make Neo and Trinity wait outside all night long. The characters in "Returner," a flashy thriller filmed to resemble anime (Japanese cartoons) and manga (Japanese comic books), are the blocks on which franchises are built. The hero is Miyamoto (Takeshi Kaneshiro), a killer-for-hire whose soul has been stung numb by his overriding survival instincts. His rival is Mizoguchi (Goro Kishitani), a sneering, bleached-blond psychopathic crime lord. Also in the picture is Milly (Ann Suzuki), a teenager who claims to be from the future and clings to Miyamoto as if he were a big brother. We sit back and let the special effects, quick-cut battles and machine-gun cinematography dilate our eyes. "Returner" is flashy enough, but the longer it plays, the more hollow it seems. The characters are running around and shooting each other mostly for the sake of running around and shooting each other. The plot, ever more confounding, involves an alien invasion, black market deception and a secret countdown-timed mission, but the movie is really about flashes, bangs and booms. Style has karate-chopped substance in the neck. The movie is directed by Takashi Yamazaki, an up-and-comer in the Japanese action- movie-director set, not to be confused with his similarly named brethren, Takeshi Kitano ("Brother") or Takashi Miike ("Audition," "Dead or Alive.") Yamazaki, whose visual gifts might eclipse 90 percent of the rest of the world's directors, doesn't seem to be able to give characters depth or make his story resonate much more than a Saturday morning cartoon. The story is nearly saved by the chemistry between Kaneshiro and Suzuki, who develop a bond that hovers somewhere between siblinghood and sexual spark. Milly, who won't let Mayamato out of the sight of her round eyes, says she comes from 2084 Tibet, where a flashback (forward?) shows the English-speaking populace battling alien bombardment. Mayamoto doesn't buy the story, but his doubt is only there to jam an extra layer of tension into the mix. For the audience, there's never a doubt that Milly is on the level. Especially when we meet a crash-landed alien, who oddly turns out to be a sweet little creature who looks like E.T.'s undernourished nephew. The kewpie looks and batting eyes of the muppet-alien don't jibe with the hard, dark edges of the surroundings. Visual contrast is nice and all, but there's a reason none of the characters in "The Matrix" resembled Oscar the grouch. The ending is ludicrous, and nearly an outright ripoff of "Back to the Future." But despite the shortcomings, "Returner" is worth catching for fans of the genre, just to get a glimpse of early Yamazaki work, and to whet the imagination of what this talented director could do with a coherent screenplay. review Returner HH1/2

 

Rated: R for violence Cast: Takeshi Kaneshiro, Ann Suzuki, Kirin Kiki, Goro Kishitani Director: Takashi Yamazaki Family call: There is lots of violence. Running time: 118 minutes Et cetera: In Japanese, with English subtitles Playing at: The Loft