A rather unusual movie on the horizon is BUNRAKU, which throws film noir, western, samurai and comic book films into a blender and lets ‘er rip. It won’t be for everyone, but I guarantee it’s quite different than most of the other films you’ve seen this year.
To help prepare you for the film’s impending release, we’ve got a cool “sizzle reel” to share. Mostly, it’s a quick glimpse at the film’s lead, Josh Hartnett, beating everybody he encounters into the ground. And convincingly! This flick feels like it’s about 80% fight scenes, and this is just a sample.
Here goes the synopsis: A mysterious drifter (Josh Hartnett) and an ardent young Japanese warrior Yoshi (Gackt) both arrive in a town that has been terrorized by outrageous and virulent criminals. Each is obsessed with his separate mission, and guided by the wisdom of The Bartender (Woody Harrelson) at the Horseless Horseman Saloon, the two eventually join forces to bring down the corrupt and contemptuous reign of Nicola (Ron Perlman), the awesomely evil “woodcutter” and his lady Alexandra (Demi Moore), a femme fatale with a secret past. This classic tale is re-vitalized and re-imagined in an entirely fresh visual context, set in a unique world that mixes skewed reality with shadow-play fantasy, a place where even the landscape can betray you. Heroes triumph here only because the force of their will transforms and transcends both space and time.
BUNRAKU will be available on Video On Demand beginning tomorrow, SEPTEMBER 1st. It will then make its way to theaters on SEPTEMBER 30th.
Demi Moore