Original Title: 1-Ichi
Release: 2003
Country: Japan
Director: Masato Tanno
Running Time: 93 Min.
Cast: Nao Omori | Teah | Koji Chihara
Written by Miguel Douglas
Published: 06.09.07
1-Ichi continues the trials and tribulations of a Japanese boy by the name of Ichi; an extremely deranged cold-blooded killer who derives his excitement from participating or watching violent behavior. Already a well established figure stemming from director Takashi Miike’s infamous 2001 film Ichi the Killer, friend and longtime collaborator of Miike, Masato Tanno, decides to take directorial helm and create 1-Ichi. A prequel to Miike’s film, 1-Ichi showcases the monstrous rise of Ichi, corresponding to his experiences as a high school student.
The story begins with the school’s best fighter, Dai (Teah), successfully winning yet another street brawl. Upon completion, he notices that a student, Shiroichi aka Ichi (reprising his previous role, Nao Omori), has been attentively watching his battle from afar, utterly captivated by his performance. Dai takes note of this and begins to furiously confront Ichi whenever he gets a chance, realizing the potential Ichi has as being a worthy opponent. All this changes with the introduction of another fighter transferring to the school, the explicably harsh Onizame (Koji Chihara), who’s violent confrontations with other students lend him a sense of combative superiority over Dai. With the clash between the three being an inevitable circumstance, the destiny of Ichi is to surely unfold violently.
With the film’s intense (albeit violent) battles, 1-Ichi surely knows how to entice the viewer with its visual display of pure chaotic madness. Intersperse throughout the film also is plenty of dark humor that most certainly brings back fond memories of the previous installment. Whereas these qualities would most certainly satisfy the average action film, 1-Ichi should be more than just those elements. Whatever happened to the interesting and unique characters so abundantly displayed in Ichi the Killer? If 1-Ichi is to showcase the rising of an infamous character such as Ichi, why doesn’t it attempt to delve deeper into Ichi’s past, let alone provide some clues that explain his actions thus far presented in this film?
And while 1-Ichi certainly is an “entertaining” film, it does nothing to further explore the character of Ichi. With a prequel, one would expect to take a step back and try to bridge a connection(s) between the previous film and this film; 1-Ichi doesn’t even make an attempt at this. All we get is a reiteration of the hardships that Ichi faced in the previous installment. Expanding upon the disturbing characteristics that Ichi adheres too would have made for good viewing, but none of that is displayed here. Perhaps the most interesting character is that of the new bully Onizame, who displays the dark sense of humor so prevalent in Ichi the Killer. With his sole mission to conquer anything that stands in his way (fighting, women, school…etc.), he becomes the archetype that both Ichi and Dai see as evil, even though the line between good and evil is heavily blurred amongst even their own actions.
And at the end of the day, 1-Ichi will provide some sort of entertainment for fans of the previous film, but it for me it was a disservice. Neither bad nor good, 1-Ichi is a film that could have expanded the Ichi universe significantly, but sadly it does the exact opposite. First-timers should check out Ichi the Killer and only watch 1-Ichi if you want to see just more of the same albeit a little less interesting.
