Be a Man!! Samurai School (2008)

I love Tak and all but Samurai School sucks sweaty balls. The main issue I have is the conception. It just didn't tickle my pickle. I can't really explain it in detail but I just don't give a f@$# about a samurai school. The movie wasn't really funny either. But oh well. What can I do? If you like crap then good for you.

BE A MAN! SAMURAI SCHOOL is a very fun little film from first-time director (and martial arts sensation) Tak Sakaguchi. Set at a hidden academy that teaches wimps how to be men (think of a low-rent Hogwarts), the first half of the feature follows a group of ragtag freshmen who can't seem to go seconds without getting their butts kicked by the near-tyrannical faculty. Then, when an old expelled student returns and demands that the school be given over to him, the freshmen must band together, save their school, and become men.The premise is silly, but BAM!SS certainly has its heart in the right place. It pulls no punches about what it is, and constantly tosses the audience a self-referential wink when things occasionally become rough. Playing on Japan's infatuation with machismo, the feature pokes fun at social constraints and stereotypes while remaining fun throughout.The acting, at times, is a little wooden and a few of the side stories could have very easily been jettisoned in favor of a bit more action, but overall, there are very few complaints. When the s*it hits the fan in the second half, we're given a very solid revenge story - coupled with some genuinely funny humor. A well-placed kick to a bear's head is a very funny piece, as is a cadet's attempt to lift an un-liftable flagpole.While it may not appeal to a lot of US audiences, BAM!SS will certainly find a niche in the States and gather plenty of fans. Writer/director Sakaguchi has proved himself not just a formidable force in front of the camera, but now also behind it.Go ahead, enroll in SAMURAI SCHOOL. Its a lot of fun.

Young men are sent off to an elite Samurai school where they train to be real men and national leaders. Taught fighting and humiliated if they fail in a task one wonders if the teachers are trying to kill their charges. Things become deadly when an old wash out returns with allies to take over the school.Damn, I've made it more exciting then it is. Supposed biting satire of Japanese society, the Japanese macho ethic and the stock characters that inhabit its mass media this is a quite dull, been there before martial arts send up that has some stylized and wholly unremarkable action scenes and a keen fashion sense. It looks exactly like you'd expect a comic or animated series come to life should look but its plotting is as clichéd as the weakest of the comics (It becomes what its satirizing to the point of boredom). I'm sure if you click with its often silly over the top feel you'll have a good time, but I'm guessing you'll be like me and wonder why some people have been saying this is the next big thing. Honestly its not bad as such but its been there and done that, not to mention too long at two hours for what is a couple of loosely connected set pieces. I'd take a pass or either borrow it from a friend or wait and hope for cable.

I could only stand the first half of the movie. The plot was really silly and boring. Just like a bad manga.The characters are convinced that the most important thing in life is to let the 'teachers'punish them for the most trivial of reasons so that they can become 'men'.I did not see any teaching done apart from literally thousands of push-ups and ghastly punishment... There were some references to old training techniques that sounded phony to me. Well, holding a 500 kg rock for days or being fried alive (and survive) sounds kind of phony, doesn't it?It is unbelievable what the students put up with for no good reason.The only sensible character seemed to be the bad guy who would not tolerate such treatment.Ummm, I wonder if I will be man enough to end watching that piece of garbage... No way!