I Am a Hero (2016)

A boring one. That is the problem with Hideo Suzuki's life. He works as an assistant for a famous manga artist, working non-stop but with little economic or career benefit for himself. His girlfriend is bored and angry with him, he has little money, there seems to be no bright future for him, his dreams of becoming a famous manga artist gone down the drain. He will never be a hero. Everyone tells him that he is just... normal.He is just a normal man.But when a strange virus starts to change people into zombies, Hideo will have to step up!"I Am a Hero" is probably one of the best (and funniest) zombie movies ever. From the very beginning, with the introduction of Hideo, till the last moment, the movie is a homage, a non-stop action set piece after set piece, a critical look on Japanese society and a tongue-in-cheek approach to the genre. The movie lasts two hours but the pace never decays (there a couple of slow down moments, though), the funny moments keep happening, and the gore and the action never lets the viewer down. There are surprising plot developments and really nice touches, and it will be difficult for the viewer to see where the movie is going. It helps that everyone, starting with our 'hero' Yô Ôizumi as Hideo, are in in the game, with great acting and that the direction and camera work are top- notch. And, of course, we cannot forget the genius behind the idea that these zombies keep their humanity in a very ironic way, they don't simply becoming empty-brained flesh-eaters, which strengthens the movie's criticism of Japanese society and elevates it to another level.Be a Hero!

Personally, I'm tired of zombie-films/series now, too many bad ones has been made, it's time for something really different. Then the Japanese do what they have done so many times before: taking a genre and tweaking it, perfecting it, making it exciting again. This movie is a real gem, but I doubt one many westerners have heard of as yet. Made by popular Japanese director Shinsuke Sato, a Director of many popular Japanese films in his country to these Days, this film shares a lot of elements with 28 days later, and this is the best zombie film since. The main character is Hideo, a 30-something Manga artist out of luck, his girlfriend/wife is fed up with his lack of success. Then reports of a new virus spreads around Tokyo, making people act, at first too late, then erratically, all the time trying to calm the public and so on. And from there this great movie takes off like the opening of Pandoras Box. It's a high budget production, with great action scenes and special effects, the most scary and diverse zombies ever to hit the screen, but also with more personality than other zombies (the high-jump athlete zombie is a masterpiece only a Japanese horror mind could have come up with!). If you're one of those thinking:"Dude, I've seen like THE worst AND the best zombie death scenes there is, so, don't bother me"....You should see this one. It's a story containing both humour, warmth and great character development, not just the random slasher. It has got some very fresh plot twists and some really nasty moments. It's blended with some real tranquil sequences, and then all hell brake loose again. Made in great environments, it has a genuine Japanese cultural feel to it and excellent camera-work, making it far more interesting to watch than any other western zombie/horror film nowadays. The soundtrack is great too. If you are a horror movie fan, a zombie aficionado, or just like action movies, here you've got something far more exciting to spend time watching than another episode of the (sleep) Walking Dead, and most other horror movies right now.So, thank you Shinsuke Sato for renewing this genre and constantly showing the rest of the World what great filmmakers you Japanese are. Don't miss it, it's a no brainier!Leon Smoothy

Or a cheap b-movie. But nothing was funny. And no special effects were cheap. It not being a comedy, or parody, wasn't a disappointment, though. It just kept the suspense ball rolling. I mean it wasn't even dark humor. I was actually surprised at how scary this was at times. Zombie films don't scare me. Not one zombie/mutant film I've ever seen from several countries has scarred me (yes, "scarred," with two "R's" and not a "scared" typo), while many have entertained me. And of course only Shaun of the Dead, to me, was a successful zombie parody if not a comedy classic. But this movie...scared me. The first zombie you see in full force was as terrifying as an actual horror movie supernatural villain. I was not expecting and briefly regretted deciding to watch something like it so late at night. Honestly. This movie also had the best zombie-on-human action. Mostly every other film except perhaps UK's "28 Days Later" with Naomie Harris just shows the zombies stumbling around like Michael Jackson's Thriller. But this had some serious acrobatics involved, worse than The Grudge ghost's disjointed movements. Just watch it and you will see what I mean. These zombies mean business. This does live up to Japan's top of the class horror classics, while reminding you that Japan even has those since it can come out with some cheap gore. And it's a nice shock for me to see something actually be scary, cool and kick-ass encased in a zombie film... This isn't Tokyo Gore Police, this isn't Machine Girl, this isn't a silly under-the-bed DVD gore porn you forgot about. I love those films and I love gore porn as well and I'm not ashamed to say, but... This is a top notch action flick with some unsightly scares and pretty much flawless production and CGI. The zombies also look unlike other zombies. Most of the zombies across films from country to country somehow look alike. Not scary, bloody, and weird colors. These zombies however on top of that looked truly disgusting in the face. There's also character development, surprise surprise. Some stuff to cause a little tear bubble to well in your eye... The senpai/senior- admiration bond between the main character and a lonely, good- hearted schoolgirl who he met while fleeing was beautiful. It quickly but smoothly evolves from primal attraction on his end, to a brotherly protection. And it stays that way, which is good because this kind of thing shouldn't be about sex. It should be about saving yourself and whoever else you can. Their relationship doesn't fluctuate and nothing more is ever suggested, and it's built upon to the very end. So I can credit that to good writing and directing. **SPOILER HERE I GUESS*** There's some annoying stuff like why he never changed after being bitten but I can guess he is special. Or why he never shot when he could have but I can guess that eggs on his climactic redemption. I also would've liked to see the female nurse do a bit more raw action earlier on instead of crying on the roof doing laundry or whatever, but she still delivers eventually. **SPOILER OVER**The story is very simple as well, but that could be manga adaption. A depressed man treated like a nobody by everybody basically becomes a somebody while having to kill anybody. And the film is shown as such. It's not filled up with unnecessary stuff.I will add in that one of my favorite Japanese actors, Yoshinori Okada, was in this and had a major role as one of the fighting survivors. He was the comedy relief which isn't surprising considering the films he has done flawlessly with similar roles in "Fine Totally Fine 2008" and "Densha Otoko." These are quintessential quirky Japanese rom-coms, one of which I adore greatly. He's also very sexy and ageless so I perked up when he appeared on my screen. It's important to keep in mind while watching this however, that many good things usually come to an end. So don't get too down about the carnage, if you're that type.

this movie is based on the mange with the same title... the movie is about first 3-4chapters. so a sequel might just be in works. lets justvstart of that few movies manage to capture spirit of manga into movies. every holywoods try have been a failure since they don't understand the manga culture, and look at it as just kids movies..like blood the last vampire, or fist of the north star...and most ot seems Hollywood will sit on another failure named ghost in the shell. they really should learn about the manga before turning it into a movie. but back to here. the story is about a struggling manga artist whos life changes by a zombie apocalypse. during his truggles he meets a girl... i wont give up too much of the story here but this is a must see movie! and a great adaptation of manga into movie..