Grasshopper (2015)

This was freaking awesome. I got to watch Yamada Ryosuke go from 'Mummy I love you' and 'Cute but quirky' to 'I'm an attractive psychopath that you shouldn't piss off.' As Usual I wasn't disappointed with Ikuta Toma's acting. And the budget of this film must of been good as the cinematography was absolutely wonderful, the music was serene and really suited the neon noir atmosphere of the entire film. Someone previously wrote a review and said "DISAPPOINTING" I'm certain we didn't watch the same film, cus it was good, quirky and had tons of twists I was certainly not expecting. Even if the film isn't your taste disappointing isn't the word I'd use after, cus it definitely isn't something I'll quickly forget about nor will it leave me with a sour taste in my mouth, as it was perfectly executed and even had a sweet moral at the end.

Moral: One evil will spread into another and eventually catch up with you' Basically this movie is a huge piece of karma...

I PROMISE YOU WILL ENJOY IT

P.S I watched it on kissasian.com --> http://kissasian.com/Drama/Grasshopper/Movie?id=29038

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This was an utter dissapointment.
They missed the whole point that could have made this movie into a masterpiece, just focus on the main leads and build up the story from beginning to the end.
Instead they are throwing persons in the middel of the movie, the story is nowhere to be found and I have questions about everyones past, because in this movie their past is essential.
It such a let down because even tho the story overal sucks ass they are greatly acting, it had all the elements (actors/movieplay/based on a great novel) but they failed.
There was almost no music in the story so that also failed to build up any triggering emotions.
I would not rewatch movie.

Watch this soley if you love Ikuta Toma's work, but don't expect too much.
Skip this.. well just skip it.

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It deserves more attention

It would have been better in a drama I think cuz there still are many things that deserve to be explain/tell. I mean, the relation between Iwanish and Semi for example. Their bromance is a little wrecked but still, it was awesome. They really care for each other, in a certain way.

And for the people who said that there is no story at all... Did you even watch this movie ? Okay, it's not straightforward but that's the beauty of the writting. Everything is explained in a certain way. And since it's a movie, it's normal that the past of each character was not totally explained. But we had the past of Whale (for example) that was totally explained, and a part of the story of Semi. But I still agree that I'm craving for more information about him. Maybe the novel has them ? I'm surely gonna read it.
But yeah, the story is well-written and the construction of the plot is amazing. If you give real attention at each scene, you'll understand it.

And the ACTING of Yamada... Too perfect to be real. And even if the character of Suzuki was quite useless (but the plot around him was interesting), the end is so cute and wholesome.

The OST are really great by the way.

It really deserves more attention.

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There’s a war going on between the Contract Killers of Japan between an underground Mob Boss named Terahata , his son Junior, and all the various Crimelord Rivals.

Lots of great action scenes in this one and so many intriguing characters, and it becomes a madhouse of murder as each killer becomes either hunted or hunter, switching back and forth in an intricate game of cat-and-mouse til you aren't sure WHO to root for!

All this, Nanao, adorably cutesy Aimi Satsukawa as a ditsy former-student of Suzuki’s who gets accidentally involved with the whole brouhaha herself, and even a cameo with Kumiko Aso as the wife of one of the assassins!

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Beautiful and grotesque at the same time. I didnt think a movie would deliver the same punch as Zebra. Both movies are brutal but I still feel the cruelty of Zebra is more scarring and nihilistic where Grasshopper feels more sad and at least Ikuta's character will bring you some respite. That said I still prefer the starkness of Zebra's grotesque world and theres a fundamental difference between Aka and Semi -- Semi is more self-mutilating, kills because it's a job, where Aka is more self-aggrandizing, kills because it's also fun. But both Aka and Semi still clearly have their own version of morality. And that's why they don't feel like villains but heroic in a world that has very different rules. Semi also had the same unconditional genuine love and loyalty for Iwanishi that Aka had for Zebra even though to an outsider their relationship would be nothing more than abuse. Grasshopper is a story about changing humanity. When you get engulfed by the darkness it's no longer you, but something mutated and that's how it will remain, that's the message of the story. So, if you get a chance, to stay human, take it.

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If I can characterise this movie in one word is that Grasshopper was confusing.

The story had premisses to become a good crime thriller, but the three main characters, as well as the rest of the criminals and so, were just there, added to the story to create the world of crime. No prior information on who they are, why they are killers and so were provided in order to get to know them. At least the main character was presented well enough so we could keep up with the story. The ending was satisfying however, as it concluded the story nicely. Again, however, the story was confusing.

So, four out of ten.

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