A recurring theme throughout Takeshi Miike's filmography is young Japanese boys and men pummelling the crap out of each other. Every few years, the director is good for another feature-length throwdown between two or many young lads at once. And you know what? We will never tire of it. Bring it, Miike!
The fine folks at Well Go USA are releasing Miike's latest, Blazing Fists (What happened to the original title, Blue Fight: The Breaking Down of Young Blue Warriors? So poetic!), on Digital, Blu-ray & DVD on March 31st. An all-new trailer was sent out today to mark the occasion. Check it out down below.
From cult director Tasashi Miike (Ichi the Killer, Audition, First Love, 13 Assassins) comes the action-packed boxing drama BLAZING FISTS, debuting on Digital, Blu-ray™ and DVD March 31 from Well Go USA Entertainment. The film features “Breaking Down,” a new form of mixed martial arts, where fighters from all walks of life compete in a “one-minute, one-round” format to determine who is the strongest​, while the story concerns a pair of juvenile detainees who take up the emerging sport as a way to channel their rage and fight their way to freedom. Inspired by the autobiography of MMA star Mikuru Asakura (who also executive produces and make a cameo appearance), BLAZING FISTS stars Danhi Kinoshita, Kaname Yoshizawa, Mariko Shinoda, Anna Tsuchiya, Chikashi Kuon, Kyosuke Yabe, Wataru Ichinose, Konatsu Kato, On Nakano, Karuma, Shoki Nakayama, Seya, Riki Sanada, Shuzo Ohira, Miku Tanaka, Nobuaki Kaneko, Susumu Terajima, Katsunori Takahashi, and Gackt.
Our own Josh caught Blazing Fists when it screened at Fantasia last Summer. He may have had his reservations about this current addition to the director's running tally of juvenile crime films, but he still found positives to glean from the viewing experience.
After thirty-five years of producing some of Japan’s most recognizable cinema, it would be tough for Miike to make every film a unique gem, and Blazing Fists fits more firmly in the programmer category than the work of an auteur. Which, by the way, is perfectly fine. A lot of Blazing Fists is ticking boxes. Troubled youth? Check. Empathetic backstory? Check. A girl loves watching her man fight but hates to see him get hurt? Check. Kids stumbling in the grown folks’ business? Check. Blazing Fists does exactly what you want it to do with razor sharp efficiency and I applaud it for that.