Given that reviewers are film enthusiasts to a degree, we tend to appreciate films that challenge our way of thinking - about movies specifically or life in general. The films containing social commentary (e.g. Fight Club, or Grave of the Fireflies) are particularly potent in this area. We all have our limits, though. I have difficulty in dealing with gruesome elements in a film, but can still accept the challenge when it's clear what the director is trying to get across. Ichi the Killer: Episode Zero doesn't give itself enough purpose to justify the graphic violence and innuendo. To be honest, it left me feeling a bit sick.

The film is a prequel to Takashi Miike's live-action film of the same name, and plays out as a flashback covering Ichi's candidacy, per se, for his career. Under the watchful eye of a sponsor that got him out of a mental institution, the timid teenager experiences a series of minor irritations that eventually cause him to snap and start killing things. The worst part is, he gets a rise out of it.

Now, I'm not a psychiatrist, and don't plan on ever being one. It can be difficult enough to understand the motives of a sane person, but all bets are off when it comes to the crazy ones. As such, the purpose of the movie evades me, and the sex angle doesn't help. Once again, I don't know what causes a person to have sadist or masochist urges. It might be perfectly normal, for all I know, but it's one thing I don't care to see or hear about. Insanity, killing, and fetishes are not things that I can take an objective interest in. Your mileage may vary.

Ichi's sponsor that's supposed to be keeping him out of trouble...	The man himself. Wasn't this guy in Slam Dunk somewhere?

You could say that the music and sound effects support the film properly, but some might prefer to just watch the characters going crazy instead of themselves being driven crazy as well. The film's music might leave you agitated, to say the least.

The visuals deserve some props, at least from a technical perspective. The animation is smooth and highly detailed, and makes good use of effects. The character drawings are decent if unoriginal, and also well-detailed.

If you have an interest in what goes on in the mind of an insane young man that derives sexual pleasure from killing, then you might get something out of this movie. I am reluctant to believe that nobody could enjoy this work, but I believe it to be a niche title - a niche I'm not part of. I think I will stick to the social commentaries for my challenges, since they at least don't make me physically ill.

Distributor: Central Park Media
Creator: Hideo Yamamoto /Shougakkan /Media Suits
Released: 2002

Plot: C
Character Design: B
Animation Quality: A
Music: B-
Overall: C+