Kitamura’s Stylish, Energetic LUPIN III Falls Short Of Expectations
The Works, an international organization comprised of the greatest thieves in the world. When the head of the organization is betrayed by one of their own (Yan), legendary thieves and criminals Lupin III (Oguri), femme fatale Fujiko (Kuroki), gunman Jigen (Tamayama), and master swordsman Goemon (Ayano), head out to find their former ally.
Based on the legendary manga series by Monkey Punch, Lupin III comes to us from action director Ryuhei Kitamura; responsible for such films as Versus, Godzilla: Final Wars, and No One Lives. With a long history of animated features, including the highly acclaimed Castle of Cagliostro from Hayao Miyazaki, and one previous live action film released in the 1970’s, this mega budget adaptation had perhaps an unfair amount of expectation laid upon it. The end result is a film that is stylish, quickly paced, and filled with action, but loses the humour, heart, and flat out entertainment of the source and many of the previously mentioned films and TV installments.
Oguri Shun’s titular character is cocksure much like the original, but he never delivers on the aloof carefree mentality of the character nor is he convincingly worldly enough to pass as an international man of mystery. Meisa Kuroki handles her Fujiko fairly well with her iconic black suit and dresses being filled out well, but Fujiko is a bombshell that unfortunately has little to do aside from exude sexuality here, a cry from her character in many other films. Inspector Zenigata, played by Tadanobu Asano, is characterized fairly well, it’s a bit of an origin story here regarding his meeting with Lupin, but I couldn’t help but feel that Asano was wasted on a role like this.
The absolute best of the principals is without a doubt Ayano and Tamayama, their Goemon and Jigen respectively are spot on and the coolest bit of the film. They look like characters lifted directly from the page and they are a welcome bit of authenticity amidst a film filled with artistic license.
One such instance is the inclusion of Michael Lee, the aforementioned traitor played by Taiwanese idol Jerry Yan. Set up as the equal of Lupin, he’s a puzzling addition that takes way too much time of the film on his own when the film should be also certainly more Lupin-centric. He isn’t bad in his role truthfully, I just find issue with a new character stealing focus from the titular character, especially in a film years in the making.
The absolute best of the principals is without a doubt Ayano and Tamayama, their Goemon and Jigen respectively are spot on and the coolest bit of the film. They look like characters lifted directly from the page and they are a welcome bit of authenticity amidst a film filled with artistic license.
One such instance is the inclusion of Michael Lee, the aforementioned traitor played by Taiwanese idol Jerry Yan. Set up as the equal of Lupin, he’s a puzzling addition that takes way too much time of the film on his own when the film should be also certainly more Lupin-centric. He isn’t bad in his role truthfully, I just find issue with a new character stealing focus from the titular character, especially in a film years in the making.
In terms of action, the film does deliver some very interesting bits, like a catfight between Kuroki and model Yuka Nakayama, a strong opening sequence, as well as a bullet filled finale that hints at what the film could have been. It’s somewhat a shame really considering how much I tend to enjoy Kitamura’s work, but the film feels like a troubled production that couldn’t ever truly find a vision for the final product.
While it is fairly entertaining, it runs a bit too long and never reaches the level I’d want, or is deserving of a Lupin film in this day and age.
Cesar Alejandro Jr. is an independent part-time contributor to Film Combat Syndicate, and serves regularly as the founder and editor of Filmsmash.com.
Long time film lover and occasional writer. I watch anything and everything though I have massive love for the works of Shunji Iwai, Jackie Chan, Johnnie To, and Kinji Fukasaku. POP! POP! Find more of me at filmsmash.com!
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