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Dead Sushi
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Millennium Media Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo (22nd June 2013). |
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The Film
 It’s comforting to know that if there’s one thing the Japanese excel at cinematically, it is crafting some of the most outrageously WTF movies you’ve ever come across. They’ve been making wildly entertaining movies for years, so this is nothing new, but over the course of the last decade and change they’ve really been stepping up their game. Just recently they graced us with the infamous (if in title only) “Zombie Ass: Toilet of the Dead” (2011) – which I desperately need to see. Similar examples of too numerous to mention, but suffice it to say there is no shortage of producers in Japan who are willing to part with their money for some uniquely bizarre plots. “Dead Sushi” (2012) is most definitely one of those films. Unlike ultra-low-budget American productions, I don’t go into low-budgeted Japanese movies with a sinking feeling in my stomach that I’m about to get assaulted by has-been actors of yesteryear combating CGI “things” that were rendered for a PlayStation 1 game. I just don’t see that kind of shoddy workmanship in their films. It feels like, regardless of how outlandish the story might be, there’s a lot of care put into making a quality film. Obviously I’m generalizing here, since not all DTV films inherently suck. But I tend to find the Japanese just make theirs work for me more consistently. I’m going to let you in on the general idea of the plot, but the fun of the film really lies in the specifics. And I’m not going to get into many of those since this is a movie you really have to experience. The story revolves around Keiko (Rina Takeda), a sushi chef who wants nothing more than to make her sushi chef father proud. She leaves home after an argument with him to work at an inn. One day, a group of pharmaceutical businessmen come in for a lunch meeting. As they eat, one of their former co-workers injects a regenerative fluid (or something like that, it really isn’t important) into some sushi, which awakens it and gives it teeth. And it can also fly. And if they bite you, you turn into a zombie that spews white rice from the mouth. It’s nasty stuff. Keiko has to team up with former sushi chef Sawada (Shigeru Matsuzaki) in an attempt to stop the carnivorous sushi from, I don’t know, eating everyone and taking over the world or something. Many of director Noboru Iguchi’s influences can be seen right on the screen. He clearly has love for “Evil Dead II” (1987) because the outright slapstick nature of the film, coupled with some great camera work and geysers of blood feel straight out of Raimi’s landmark horror comedy. There’s a scene where a woman gets her head cut off just as she’s about to make-out with a guy, and he keeps worming his tongue around in her mouth despite a continuous spray of blood and the lack of a body to keep her head upright. In another, a guy contemplates whether or not to feel up a girl as she’s dying since “nobody is going to know anyway”. Everything is done tongue-in-cheek to the extreme. Towards the end a character actually says, “Things have reached a point where they no longer make sense”, which is something you probably could have said right after the opening credits. Sushi have sex and mate, releasing hundreds of little sushi. A man transforms into a giant tuna. A friendly tamago roll helps Keiko in addition to serenading her with love songs. A body sushi session (with the rolls laid out over the women) ends in a glorious bloodbath. Just those few sentences alone make this film sound like a wild nightmare. You just have to see it to believe it. Although a good amount of CGI is used to bring these little flying slices of fish to life, there is an abundance of practical effects work that left me grinning. The best low-budget films are those that know how to balance real, tangible FX work alongside minor bursts of computed-generated effects. I won’t even try to defend the CGI here; it is uniformly terrible in every way. But the lack of a more refined polish kinda works in its favor, since it gives the shots an almost cartoonish quality that is fitting here. The practical work, though, is pretty great. Even simple things, like watching two pieces of sushi have a conversation about killing, come off as slightly believable because they look real. Iguchi had no higher aspirations for this film other than crafting a wholly original, ‘80s-influenced horror movie with such an outlandish story that it would instantly grab your attention based off the title alone. In that regard, mission accomplished.
Video
“Dead Sushi” rolls onto Blu-ray with a 25 GB single-layered disc, featuring a 1.78:1 1080p 24/fps AVC MPEG-4 encoded image. It looks good enough, nothing mind-blowing. The image is a bit soft, though that might be due to the brightness looking a tad boosted. The majority of facial close-ups reveal a good amount of fine detail, with strong, defined lines often showing through. There is virtually no grain, which leads me to believe this might have been shot digitally. Although digital camera work can look very clean, a downside is that CGI of varying quality (which we get here) sticks out like a big zit on your face. Black levels aren’t much of an issue since a lot of the film takes place either in the daylight or inside with optimal lighting, but the few scenes in the dark? Things look a little hazy. You’ll be having so much fun with the movie that I doubt technical specs will (or should) matter much.
Audio
Lossy tracks? What year is this? We get a quadruple set of options here – both Japanese and English Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound tracks, as well as Japanese and English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo mixes. I didn’t bother checking out the dub (never do), but the original Japanese language track lacked the punch a lossless track could have provided. It’s got a rockin’ soundtrack, but none of the songs have much depth. There are a lot of sound effects that will give you the heebie jeebies, though. The Japanese sure do love slurping sounds when people are making out. The flying sushi provides some of the best effects for the rear speakers. And, uh, the sounds of sushi making love are sure to make the most of your system. I wish this had a little more oomph to it, but it is serviceable enough for a standard Dolby Digital offering. There are only English (forced) subtitles available.
Extras
“Dead Sushi” is lively in the supplemental department. We get a few featurettes, an interview, and theatrical trailers. “Making-Of Featurette” is a… making-of featurette (1080p) that runs for 11 minutes and 1 second. This is presented as a mix of on-set interviews and fly-on-the-wall footage. We get to see some shooting on the set, cast members playing around, everyone talking about the film. “World Premiere Stage Greeting” is a featurette (1080p) that runs for 11 minutes. The cast and crew are introduced before the film’s screening at Fantasia. “Dead Sushi Extreme Sushi Eating Contest” is a featurette (1080p) that runs for 13 minutes and 34 seconds. Bull penis sushi, anyone? “Fantasia Film Festival Interview” is an interview (1080p) that runs for 2 minutes and 38 seconds. Writer/director Iguchi and star Taneda talk about the film. Interesting that Iguchi mentions three influences for the film were “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes” (1978), "Jaws" (1975), and "Piranha" (1978). The theatrical trailer (1080p) runs for 1 minute and 57 seconds. Bonus trailers (1080p) are included for the following: - “Laddaland” runs for 3 minutes and 5 seconds. - “The Liquidator” runs for 1 minute and 51 seconds. - “High Kick Girl!” runs for 1 minute and 36 seconds. - “The Sanctuary” runs for 2 minutes and 34 seconds.
Packaging
The single disc comes housed in an Blu-ray eco case. The cover art is disappointingly bland, but the title really sells it enough on its own.
Overall
If you love weird, zany Japanese movies then this is right up your alley.
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