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Released by: Artsmagic
Released on: 6/29/2004
Director: Takashi Miike
Cast: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Tomoko Tabata, Kazue Fukiishi, Kenji Sawada, Naomasa Rukudaira
Year: 2002
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The Movie:
Tatsuya Fujiwara (star of Battle Royale and Battle Royale 2: Requiem) plays Eiji, while Satoshi Tsumabuki (of Dragon Head and Tomie: Re-Birth) plays Sabu. The two boys are old friends from way back to their childhood years. Soon though, Eiji is shipped off to a work camp on the island of Ishikawa. Sabu isn't really too sure what happened to his old friend and when he begins to ask around he finds that those in charge of the work camp don't really want to discuss the matter.
It turns out that Eiji was sent away for stealing a golden cloth worth roughly 100 Ryos, but it seems that someone framed him. While in the camp, he becomes very introverted and doesn't socialize with the other inmates anymore than he has to. When Sabu finds out that Eiji is on the island, he makes an attempt to visit him in hopes that he can find out how this all happened. Eiji, on the other hand, is far more interested in vengeance against those who had him locked up in the first place than in clearing his own name.
From the director of such excessive films as Ichi The Killer, Fudoh, Visitor Q and Dead Or Alive, one might expect a fast paced blood soaked slapstick celebration of the absurd but Sabu is an extremely quiet film that moves at a slow and deliberate pace. If Ichi told its story in shouts and bursts than Sabu tells it in careful whispers. Those familiar with The Bird People Of China or Ley Lines though already know that Miike's quiet side is just as impressive as his boisterous one and sometimes considerably more effective.
The camerawork is quite impressive in this film, no manic handheld shots of wild zooms, just slow and calculated glides that capture the environments of period Japan quite nicely. The color scheme used in the film is subtle but pretty and the cinematography is considerably more delicate than what we usually associate with Miike and with made for TV movies.
Performances are solid across the board. Fujiwara, who did good things with Kenta Fukasaku's script for Battle Royale in 2001 is equally impressive here though don't expect him to shoot anyone, classmate or otherwise. His Eiji sears with anger in the last half of the film but never really boils over the way you might expect him to, which makes the movie all the more interesting in its own way. Tsumabuki in the title role of Sabu is also quite effective, and brings a sense of concern for his friend to the screen that is both believable and sincere, but also just unusual enough to keep the movie going.
Video/Audio/Extras:
For a low budget made for TV movie, Sabu fares reasonably well. The image is a little on the soft side but the colors look really nice and the level of detail is higher than I had expected it to be. There aren't any issues with print damage issues and compression artifacts and the like are kept to a minimum.
Aside from about a half dozen typos in the removable subtitles, the audio portion of this release is pretty solid. The Dolby Digital 2.0 track is in its native Japanese language and the dialogue comes through clearly and concisely overtop of the music and effects. There are a few moments of nice channel separation that help set the mood, and there aren't any problems with hiss or distortion in the mix.
There are a few keen supplements worth checking out on this disc. First up are two trailers, as well as filmographies for Miike and Tatsuya Fujiwara, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Tomoko Tabata, Kazue Fukiishi and Kenji Sawada. Miike also gets a bio. A nice sized gallery of promotional material is included as well.
The main extras though are the interviews and the 'making of' segment. The first Takashi Miike interview clocks in at just a hair shy of nine-minutes, and the second one at roughly one and a half minutes. In these pieces he talks about his work in the film industry and about Sabu in a fair amount of detail. Tatsuya Fujiwara and Satoshi Tsumabuki are interviewed in a four-minute segment, while Tomoko Tabata and Kazue Fukiishi talk for a minute and a half. All of the actors/actresses seem to have enjoyed working on the production and it's interesting to hear of their experiences working with the director.
The Making Of Sabu runs healthy twenty-one minutes and takes a pretty in-depth look at the making of the film (obviously). There's some nice behind the scenes footage as well as some nice shots of the cast and crew at work. It's not ground-breaking material in any sense but it is interesting and if you found that you enjoyed the film, you'll probably want to check this out as well.
The Final Word:
Sabu comes to DVD in style courtesy of Artsmagic's fine presentation. The movie might surprise those used to Miike's more sensational films, but it plays very well and proves that there is a lot more to the director's talents than arterial spray and gratuitous exploitation.