Singapore International Film Festival 2018
Killing
Language
Japanese - subtitles to be advised
Director
Shinya Tsukamoto
Cast
Sousuke Ikematsu, Yu Aoi, Tatsuya Nakamura
Synopsis
Swordsman Mokunoshin Tsuzuki earns a peaceful living as a labourer on a rice paddy in the outskirts of Edo, the former capital of pre-modern Japan. Maintaining his sword skills through daily sparring with farmer’s son Ichisuke, who himself harbours dreams to serve the shogun as a samurai, Mokunoshin’s idyllic life is threatened when talk of an impending civil war reaches his remote village. When a stoic older samurai recruits him for a capital-bound task force bent on easing the civil unrest, Mokunoshin’s reluctance to kill is challenged as the surrounding violence escalates.
A trim, compact study of human nature and its complex relationship with violence, Killing is the latest film to feature director Tsukamoto’s anti-war stance.