azumi

I am a great fan of Japanese Culture. Not only the pop culture, but the history as well. So every once in a while, when a new Japanese film shows up, I will ask my friend Kazu about it. I show him a flier for the film 'Azumi' starring a cute girl, Aya Ueto.
Kazu tells me: "I don't know of the movie, but she is a model turned singer, turned actress. That's common in Japan."

Well, I guess that's the way young people get famous over there. All I know at this point is that the movie is about assassins, and the actress is overboard cute! Last night, I caught the 10:00 show at the independent movie house. I prepared for a really bad movie with sub-titles. I am surprised! I really enjoy the movie and Aya Ueto is an OK actress. I won't spoil anything by saying that there's a lot of swordplay, blood and teeth-grinding drama.

Chances are that you may never see this movie. It's in limited release around the country and it only played for a week in LA. But if you enjoy Japanese pop-stars dressing up in period costumes, taking a samurai sword and killing entire villages, then search for this film.