The end of the world is near, and I'm not talking about the latest theory that says Earth is going to get wiped out by a comet roughly two weeks from now. I'm talking about the events of Takashi Miike's comedic vampire action thriller YAKUZA APOCALYPSE.
Synopsis:
Fearsome Yakuza boss Kamiura is also a bloodsucking vampire. One day, men arrive from a competing clan and deliver him an ultimatum: Play nice or die. Kamiura refuses and, during a fierce battle, is torn limb from limb. With his dying breath, he passes on his vampire powers to his loyal lieutenant, Kageyama. His first order of business is to avenge his mentor, setting him on a collision course with the seemingly unstoppable foreign syndicate, and take his place as the new Yakuza boss.
There's no indication of it in that description, but YAKUZA APOCALYPSE, as the title implies, does indeed feature some "end-of-the-world spectacle", and you get glimpses of that in the newly released red band trailer, which can be viewed below.
However, the end times element gets largely overshadowed by the "martial arts extravaganza" side of things, as we see that becoming a vampire gives a helpful boost to one's fighting skills. The cast includes Yayan Ruhian, and having seen what he can do as a regular human being in THE RAID and THE RAID 2, I don't know if my mind can handle seeing him in action as a vampire.
There's something else going on in this trailer, though. Something which steals the show from the vampires… What is up with that frog?
All of YAKUZA APOCALYPSE's secrets will be revealed when Samuel Goldwyn Films releases it into theatres in North America on October 9th.
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