13 ASSASSINS, a Takashi Miike period action film, opens 5/20 in SF May 20, 2011

13 ASSASSINS
Takashi Miike period action film from Japanese era of samurai
Opens May 20, 2011 in Bay Area

Landmark’s Lumiere Theatre, 1572 California Street, San Francisco (415) 267-4893
Tickets are $10.50 for general admission and $8.00 for seniors, students, and children

Landmark’s Shattuck Cinemas, 2230 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley, CA (510) 464-5980
Tickets are $10.00 for general admission and $8.00 seniors and children

Showtimes and tickets will be available starting Tuesday, May 17, at: http://www.landmarktheatres.com/tickets and theatre box office

Check out Bay Area engagements on Facebook:
San Francisco: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=204132622943116
Berkeley: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=160396847354250

http://www.13assassins.com/

Cult director Takeshi Miike delivers a bravado period action film set at the end of Japan's feudal era in which a group of unemployed samurai are enlisted to bring down a sadistic lord and prevent him from ascending to the throne and plunging the country into a wartorn future. Highly prolific, Miike is credited with over 80 films since making his directorial debut in the early 1990s. Landmark films in his illustrious career include Audition, Sukiyaki Western Django, Ichi the Killer, One Missed Call, The City of Lost Souls and the Dead or Alive yakuza trilogy. The film premieres locally at the San Francisco International Film Festival.

“The year is 1844. A young lord rapes and kills with impunity by virtue of his political connections. Though the era of the samurai is fading, an honest government official covertly enlists thirteen swordsmen to assassinate this sadistic lord before he can seize more power. With the clock ticking, the assassins lay a deadly trap for the lord and his army of bodyguards, culminating in one of the bloodiest, muddiest swordfights ever put to film. As the leader of the thirteen samurai, Koji Yakusho (Tokyo Sonata, Babel) invokes Toshiro Mifune at both his most contemplative and charismatic. But it’s [director] Takashi Miike who steals the show through sheer spectacle—the climactic battle scene lasts a breathless forty-five minutes—filling the screen with visual references to more than just the original film; there are echoes of every samurai classic imaginable, not to mention some distinctly Miike touches. Let’s just say, when the blood spills it flows.”—Colin Geddes, Toronto Film Festival.

"A classic samurai film"—Deborah Young, Hollywood Reporter

"13 ASSASSINS is a stone-cold, limb-severin', bull-burnin' masterpiece."—Aint it Cool News

"The film is a relentless locomotive. Enthralling and entertaining."—Glenn Heath, Jr., Slantmagazine.com

"Takashi Miike is in top, slashtastic form"—Leslie Felperin, Variety

"13 ASSASSINS is pure pleasure. It culminates in a magnificent 45-minute showdown that has to be the best final battle sequence in cinema since, oh Kill Bill at least."—Lee Marshall, Screendaily.com

"It delivers such intensity that it’s hard to breath, that it’s difficult not to stand up and cheer. There are few samurai films (classic or modern) that are as satisfying as this one."—Cole Abaius, Filmschoolrejects.com

The film’s running time is 126 minutes; it is not rated.

Official Website: http://www.13assassins.com/