[IMDB link] [Netflix link] Been meaning to check this out for awhile.
PEOPLE: Directed by Takashi Miike, who is known for his violent Japanese movies.
QUIRKS: Japanese. Yakuza. Ultra-violence. Torture.
VISUALS: Some incredibly graphic scenes of violence.
BAD STUFF: The post-climax ending is a bit hard to understand, with lots of IMDB-forum speculation as to what happened. And of course, with everyone being foreign, it is a bit harder to follow than an English movie.
CONCLUSION: This was a good story about mob violence, with some memorable torture scenes, such as the nipple-slicing. Good stuff.
RATINGS: Netflix: 4/5 stars. IMDB: 7.5/10 (we voted 7).
RECOMMENDATION: Do you like over-the-top gore and violence? Then see this; it’s considered one of the great cinematic masterpieces of violence.
SIMILAR MOVIES: Batman The Dark Knight has similarities. Both Kakihara from Iichi and the Joker have slits to the sides of their mouths in the shape of grins, dyed hair, wear crazy outfits, try to take over organized crime, and act without morals. Ichi also has a blade in his shoe, like The Joker.
MOVIE QUOTE: Ichi: Did… you really want me to rape you, Miss Tachibana?
Karen: Oh, no. I didn’t want it from you. I wanted it from anyone. The only thing that can help me now is despair.
FRIENDS’ RATINGS: Christie loved it. Neal M spoke highly of it. And I’ve generally heard this movie mentioned by lots of people.
TAKING THINGS TOO FAR: This movie has a scene where Ichi grabs someone’s cheek, and starts pulling. He keeps on pulling on the person’s cheek until he rips their entire face off! This didn’t seem possible, so Carolyn & I immediately grabbed each other’s cheeks and started pulling. Hard. But Carolyn got me way worse than I got her, so then she had me do it again. That time, I got Carolyn way worse than she got me. My cheek hurt for minutes to hours, but Carolyn’s cheek hurt for several days. Our conclusion is that it’s not quite as easy to rip someone’s face off as the movie makes it look.
Music: KMFDM – People Of The Lie
Claire's blog 
January 22, 2010 at 11:52 AM
[…] to see a sequel. • Escape From New York 1 (1981) – A classic. Snake Plissken is epic. • Ichi The Killer aka Koroshiya 1 (2001) – Nipple slice!!!!!! That Ichi guy sucks. • Sympathy For Mr. […]
January 23, 2011 at 4:35 PM
Ahahaha i forgot about us trying to rip each others’ faces off!
January 24, 2011 at 1:19 PM
Rev. Organbeard: “The slit mouth is revered to as a Glasgow smile. It’s because in the UK where guns are heavily regulated and hard to come buy unless you have money knife violence is more prevalent. So in Scotland, the technique originated in Glasgow, gangs do this to rivals. Glasgow at least at one point was the murder capital of northern Europe.”