A
little existential angst is understandable in a ronin (masterless samuai), but
Mokunoshin Tsuzuki takes it to a whole new level. He has skills, but his hesitancy
to take life will be interpreted as a weakness in cinematic madman Shinya
Tsukamoto’s lean, minimalist samurai drama, Killing, which screens
during the 2020 Boston Festival of Films from Japan.
Tsuzuki
has been marking time as a seasonal laborer in a remote agricultural village
and serving as its unofficial protector. He likes his hosts, particularly the
sweet-tempered Yu and trains hard with her amiable brother Ichisuke, but he
realizes he must eventually restart his career as a swordsman. Fate seems to
intervene when Jirozaemon Sawamura passes through the village, recruiting ronin
to fight on behalf of the Shogun, not unlike Takashi Shimura in the opening scenes
of Seven Samurai. He will take Tsuzuki as a member of the core group and
also Ichisuke as a reserve, neither of which sits well with Yu.
To
make matters worse, a band of suspicious ruffians starts camping nearby. Yu
fears they will pillage the village once the ronin move on, but Tsuzuki is convinced
they are merely rowdy and a little rough around the edges. He holds fast to that
hope, even after they badly thrash poor Ichisuke. However, that will be more
than enough to convince Sawamura otherwise.
Arguably,
both Tsuzuki and Sawamura are both partially right. The former correctly
predicts violence has a tendency to beget violence, but as they say in Texas (with
Sawamura concurring), some of these characters just need killing. Regardless,
Tsukamoto’s Killing is a rather elegant meditation on the nature of violence
that actually fits the bushido spirit quite well. Real trained martial artists
always try avoid fighting outside of a controlled tournament setting, unless it
is absolutely necessary. It is not just because their skills are so deadly
(though that may be true). It is more about inner discipline and walking the
humble path.
In
any event, this could well be Tsukamoto’s best performance yet in one of his
own films, playing Sawamura with the gravity of black hole. He is massively
steely, with hubris to match. Frankly, Sosuke Ikematsu’s Tsuzuki is somewhat
dull in comparison. However, Yu Aoi is openly vulnerable and acutely compelling
as her innocent namesake.
Tsukamoto
definitely reminds us in no uncertain terms how hard life was for peasants.
Even though there is not a lot of action in Killing per se, it will
still satisfy legit Chanbara connoisseurs. Highly recommended for jidaigeki
fans and viewers who appreciate slow burning tragedy, Killing screens tonight
(2/1) and Saturday (2/15), as part of this year’s Boston Festival of Films from
Japan.