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DVD REVIEW [Early] . Graveyard of Honor (aka: New Graveyard of Honor)

They say nihilism loses its appeal after a certain age. Maybe it has to do with a change in lifestyle that comes with lasting relationships, fulfilling work, and true freedom of choice. Teenagers often are drawn toward nihilistic works because of the absence of these elements in their lives. Whether that’s truly the case, I don’t know. However, I have noticed a personal drifting away from such works in recent years (I’ve even stopped reading Palahniuk). I do feel that had I seen this film at an earlier age, under different circumstances, it might have blown me away. As it is, Takashi Miike’s Graveyard of Honor (aka: New Graveyard of Honor) made for a mixture of uncomfortable and tedious viewing that tested my patience and prompted its fair share of moral consternation.

A remake of Kinji Fukasaku’s legendary Graveyard of Honor, Takashi Miike’s Graveyard focuses on a the rise and fall sociopath yakuza soldier named Rikuo Ishimatsu (based on a real life Yakuza delinquent, and played by Goro Kishitani), set against a backdrop of Japan’s bubble boom and bust. Having been at the right place at the right time to save a clan godfather from an attacker, Ishimatsu has found himself an instant officer, with power and influence to spare. However, this not being a film concerning the relation of power and responsibility, Ishimatsu uses his influence to intimidate, bully, assault, rob, and rape. When a misunderstanding results in Ishimatsu shooting his clan’s godfather, he is turned (rightly) into an underworld pariah. With the mob out for his head, Ishimatsu turns the defiant child, fighting back against anything and everything that crosses his path. What follows may not be the “orgy” of violence that the jacket copy proclaims, but it is nonetheless shocking or disconcerting for it.

First and foremost, I think there’s a bit of an issue of translation for the title of the original film. Graveyard of Honor, to me, brings about connotations of a resting place for brave men. This couldn’t be more at odds with the message of the film. A better title may have been Honor’s Graveyard, with loyalty and virtue being laid to rest in favor of sheer cunning and amorality. Really, save for one stalwart Yakuza, whose virtue is emphasized even in his traditional Western whites (he doesn’t survive), the film is populated entirely by miscreants, thugs, villains, and of course, the outright monster Ishimatsu. There are no pools of redemption to be found, no pinpoints of light at the end of the tunnel. There is only darkness and despair for as far as the eye can see.

Not having seen the original Graveyard of Honor, I cannot comment on the tone of the violence in that film. However, in comparison to Miike’s other works, this seems to be his most mean spirited and excessive. This is not a simple moralist Miike bashing. I have much affection for the comedic excess of Ichi the Killer, Dead or Alive, or Gozu. But with Graveyard, Miike’s lingering shots of excessive beatings (of men as often as women), stabbings, and all around ugliness made me weary. While in his other films Miike has a tendency to inject humorous interjections in an effort towards balancing the oppressive violence on screen, these are largely absent here. Certainly this may be in line with the tone and message of the film — Honor is dead. Life is shit – but I have no doubt that the same sequences could have been trimmed down a slight bit. It’s worth noting that much of the violence is hidden just off camera, the frame capturing only the flying fists or the whirling blade, but it doesn’t make it any more comfortable viewing.

That said, there are some rather cool sequences hidden within. For instance, one involving Ishimatsu on his apartment balcony, engaged in a gun battle with the police, while clad only in his boxers and high on heroin, is an absolute blast. It’s so odd, so off kilter it has to be seen to be believed.

Fans of Miike already know that his films fall into the realms of garbage as often as worth. In that sense, it’s worth nothing that this is one of his “better” films, in spite of its narrative. While not too much to look at (shot on high quality DV, it has a sort of raw, captured on the fly look), the framing is about as pretty as the film’s subject matter, the film boasts some decent performances on the part of Kishitani and the usual cast of Miike regulars. Kishitani’s performance is exceedingly animalistic, and very threatening, helping to convey the very real danger that comprises Ishimatsu’s character. It’s also further worth noting that the film’s script was handled by Shingenori Takechi, of Izo fame (or infamy, depending on how you look at it). If you’ve seen that picture, you further know what to expect.

In closing, if you’re looking for the ultimate in cinematic bad-boy nihilistic murder and crime sprees, by all means, check out Graveyard of Honor. You won’t be disappointed. However, if you find yourself to be growing weary of adolescent darkness and despair, feel free to skip it.

The DVD
AnimEigo’s release of Graveyard of Honor may mark the best treatment a Miike film has received this far in America. Their two disc edition presents the film in a crystal clear 16:9 anamorphic transfer, maintaining its original aspect ratio, with the original Japanese audio and accompanying subtitle track. While the first disc contains the film only, the second is chock full of extras — more than I’ve seen for any American Miike release to date.

The program notes this go around include everything from historical background regarding Japan’s Heisei era to the clinical nature of skull fractures and an explanation of the rules of Baccarat (very useful for Bond). The Miike bio is fairly in depth and informative, and one of the first I’ve seen on DVD to be comprised of more than two or three slides. Likewise, the notes on Yakuza are one of the first I’ve come across on any Yakuza film DVD, and prove a worthwhile read for Yakuza cinema fans. The section regarding Graveyard of Honor 1975 relates the differences in tone, style, and content from the Fukasaku original and the Miike remake. I always make a big deal about these production notes from AnimEigo, but it’s with good reason. AnimEigo makes sure to put anything and everything that could possibly enhance your enjoyment or understanding of the film within these notes. Furthermore, these notes will only help you to further understand other Japanese films further on down the line. It’s awesome.

Under the Featurettes section, AnimEigo has included five programs. A Graveyard of Honor Interview Special, Making of Featurette, Making of Teaser (kind of like one of those 3 minute production teasers you’re increasingly finding on QuickTime), Press Release interviews (in it, Miike describes Graveyard of Honor as the “no-good, dangerous younger brother” to Fukasaku’s Graveyard.), and a Premier Special (Miike explains the ratings board passed the film with only an R-15 rating because the producers explained it was an anti-drug film. Pretty rad.). The content found in these is pretty self explanatory. What is unique, however, is that AnimEigo took the time to extensively subtitle all of these. All dialog and all screen titles are fully translated using their trademark color-coded subtitles. Most companies tend to throw these extras out when releasing Japanese films in the states, even though the featurettes tend to be more informative and more interesting than anything concocted by the releasing company. This is quite a bit of a treat.

Lastly, you have your image and trailer galleries. The Image Gallery feature contains a set of 10 production stills from the film. The trailer gallery contains ones for Graveyard of Honor, Miike’s Big Bang Love, Juvenile A (aka: 4.6 Billion Years of Love), Shinobi no Mono, Trail of Blood, and Shogun Assassin. Good stuff.

All in all, this is probably the best Miike release I’ve seen in America. AnimEigo has presented the film in a great little package, with about as much supplemental information and extras as you could ever hope for. It’s a definite treat for fans. While I may not have enjoyed the content of the film, the package itself comes highly recommended.

Graveyard of Honor releases August 14th, 2007.

About the Author

Chris Nelson has been a film fanatic since age six. A former film and English major, he is now a Software Engineer and contract Technical Writer living in the Silicon Valley.