Gobankiri (2024)

Misleading synopsis, messy visual effects.

Yes, unfortunately you read that correctly. I spent the first 15 minutes wondering if I’d somehow stumbled into the wrong historical piece, to which the answer was unfortunately, no, I had not.

The bloom and lighting in this film is so intense I had to look away from brightness hurting my eyes periodically, combined with some immersion-breaking visual effects and background choices. The bloom was more intense than that in most video games, so be aware if you’re sensitive to bright lights.

In regards to the synopsis, it is not false words, but more that it gives the misleading impression that this is a film of revenge and calculated action - the reality being that it was largely slow, meandering, and seldom had action.

Why isn’t my rating lower? The short answer would be casting and supporting characters. The main character’s daughter, his underlings, the rather scary lady who ran a local establishment, all provided engagement. Overall, the acting and casting were solid, if not much else in this film.

It was a funny moment upon realising Kiyohara Kaya was also in this film, being as only two weeks before I was watching her in 18x2 Beyond Youthful Days. She must have been busy.

Read More