47 Ronin (2013)

This is the Christy pick for the month of November and I didn't hate it!  Yay!  I didn't love it but let's focus on the positive, shall we?

After the disgrace and suicide of Lord Asana (Min Tanaka), his samurai are left masterless ronin, outcasts of society.  Oishi (Hiroyuki Sanada) vows revenge on the lord that engineered this hostile takeover, Kira (Tadanobu Asana), and the shapeshifting witch (Rinko Kikuchi) who helped him.  To this end, he pulls together his 45 men and the demon-touched half-breed Kai (Keanu Reeves) and sets off to stop Lord Kira before he can marry Asana's daughter, Mika (Ko Shibasaki).

Okay.

The tale of the 47 Ronin is practically sacrosanct.  There is a national holiday in Japan honoring them.  Keeping that in mind, this movie is a sacrilege.  It adds mystical monsters and witches and demons and Keanu Reeves to a story that is dramatic enough on its own merits.

That being said, I'm not opposed to the idea of a magical realism retelling.  I think it was an interesting attempt, though I'm still not sure why Keanu Reeves was involved.  This was not a good character for him.  I like seeing the mythology of other countries, even if this was filtered heavily through a Western lens.  Also, the costumes and cinematography were beautiful.  I think my real issue here is that I don't think they went far enough.  If you're going to co-opt a national legend, go balls out.  Abraham Lincoln:  Vampire Slayer that bitch.

No, wait, that's a terrible example.  Never mind.  Pride and Prejudice and Zombies that bitch!