Crows O

Aroview: Irresistibly entertaining manga adaptation from the genius director of ICHI THE KILLER, presenting the first in a series of Japanese action films focused on a group of high school guys battling for ultimate supremacy in the schoolyard.

Taking cues from cult bad-boy delinquency dramas, dir. Miike carves out his most accessible work to date, thrilling in ultra-stylishly volatile set pieces without sacrificing the humourous perversity for which he’s known, evidenced here by his consistent undercutting of the hilariously hairstyled cast’s macho posturing. The acting is uniformly excellent, and the characters memorable, and while fans yearning for the director’s outlandish attitude to return might well be underwhelmed, this is about the easiest recommendation we’ve had to make for some time. Bring on the next one.

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