WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
First, the Recap:
Ghosts of the past. When the decisions we’ve chosen to make in the present turn us into something other than we used to be, steal us away from notions of honor and tradition, and cause us to cast aside all that we were taught–can we truly hide from the potential consequence it brings? Yakuza crime boss Hiroshi (Taki Abe) rules the modern-day city in which he resides through fear, intimidation, and sheer force of will, all while having his fingers in the criminal activities he’s chosen to undertake. Having a loyal but unruly force of thugs and subservient minions, including local police and SWAT teams, domination over his domain is absolute. However, one phone call changes everything.
Keeping tabs on a particular group of his servants checking in on a drug stash, a sudden and violent turn of events is heard, all being relayed via the now panicked voice of his primary dirty cop, SWAT team member Dale (Laurent Boiteux). The team decimated within less than a minute, Dale takes it upon himself to hunt the unknown assailant down, even as Hiroshi questions two others, Simon & Paul (Tyler De Nawi & Joseph Carbone), that witnessed the aftermath from a distance, with one word in their account sticking out–ninja. While Hiroshi’s line of questioning takes a deadly turn, Dale struggles against a now-revealed enemy (David Voung). It soon begins to strike Hiroshi, as he gathers his forces, that the shadow of his wrong choices, past and present, has come.
Next, my Mind:
Written, directed, produced, and edited by Sydney, Australia-based filmmaker Sam Gosper, “Hunt For Hiroshi” is thirty-plus minutes of high-definition, high-octane, adrenaline-fueled visuals accompanied by a well-written, in-your-face narrative that more than delivers its intense and gritty thrills while breathlessly leaving the hints of what’s yet to come. The first part in a series of short films under the main title “Circle of Ninja”, this debut installment concisely introduces us to its leading players and the edgy world they run within, while providing fantastically choreographed fight sequences and ominous foreshadowing of things yet to be explored. Additionally, for this reviewer anyway, it has been a long spell since seeing a truly modern depiction of the ninja warrior, and suffice it to say, this was worth the wait, especially when we know the story has only just begun!
Actor Taki Abe does an excellent job in playing the hunted, Hiroshi, just as you would desire your Yakuza crime boss to be–one bad dude! Even when calm and collected, Abe infuses Hiroshi with that much needed sense of deadly resolve and angry displeasure given the circumstance he’s now coming to realize as reality. Despite his unscrupulous ways, there’s a realistic air to how Abe portrays Hiroshi’s decision to react in the face of certain, unanticipated revelations. Boiteux gets the coveted spot in playing Hiroshi’s right hand dirty cop, Dale, who gets the fortunate chance to go mano y mano with a ninja–certainly making one seriously dangerous choice in doing so–but man, he does do a slam bang job of it! Loyal to a fault, there’s no holding back by Boiteux’s character to say the least!
Then we have David Voung, who is simply awesome as the ninja protagonist, executing his moves with the lethal, lightning-quick, and stealthy precision as one completely envisions for the masters of a secret and shadowy order. Supporting turns by De Nawi and Carbone add necessary emphasis on the weight of the situation Hiroshi is battling as well. With it’s feature-film quality, superb fight scenes, solid storytelling, and a perfect finale to leave you wanting more, “Hunt For Hiroshi” is a most welcome addition to the independent short film world that more than deserves notice while making one wonder what else shall arise from the Land Down Under?
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
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