Takeshi Miike's extensive filmography features a long list of bizarre, perverted and ultra-violent movies which push the boundaries of acceptability. With 13 Assassins he reigns in his most notorious excesses but unleashes one of the most epic battles ever seen on film. You'd be forgiven for thinking that 13 Assassins was more of a drama than an action movie during the first half - much like Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai (with which Miike's film has often been favourably compared with - now that's what I call high praise), establishing and bringing the assassins together forms a large chunk of the initial narrative. Patience is a virtue, and once you've persevered through the dialogue-heavy set-up the pay-off is worth the wait. Blood, rain, mud and flashing, clashing blades fill the screen for the best part of an hour, in a climactic battle to rival anything the great Kurosawa directed.
