I didn't particularly like Shinzanmono. Its less police procedure and more feel good stories as every episode Kaga uncovered stuff about people's past. You can be 100% sure that its basically someone who is not thought of well, ends of being a nice person. Not to mention a lot of what Kaga did had nothing to do with the murder mystery.
The Wings of the Kirin is similar. It starts off as a murder mystery and luckily the movie doesn't allow Kaga to uncover the past of every character he comes across. It basically takes its time to build up the revelation, which is pretty good except they could have easily cut 30 minutes from the runtime if the police had bothered to check the murder victim's car. If you liked Shinzanmono, you'll definitely love this movie. For me it was watchable.
The above screen cap is the stupidest lines in the movie which was asked by Kaga's superior after Kaga uncovers new evidence. Obviously many people enjoy Shinzanmono but I can't enjoy a murder mystery that aims to manufacture touching, safe feel good moments and pays lip service to police and forensic steps.
I watched this moving on my way back from Osaka this month. This movie is quite draggy with not much payoff. Unlike Mike, I tend to overlook plot hole the size of Minnie Driver's head, but this movie was just too much.
ReplyDeleteMy biggest problem however was how Kirin was incorporated into the storyline. It was quite arbitrary and forced. Instead of Kirin, it could just as well been a Glico Man or Pokemon statue with little impact to the storyline.
Your time is probably better spent watching Bread of Happiness. Or if you like something more gritty, Nameless Gangster. (haha yes, saw both of them on the plane too)
Here's my Kansai trip album!
https://plus.google.com/photos/103301517832561514470/albums/5799241426422125169
Well, I rather enjoyed this (but of course, I'm such an Abe Hiroshi fanboy I'd watch him in anything) and was prepared to refute Mike until about 20 minutes from the end. Geez, what a crash and burn. That's when I realized, like Mike and Jung, how silly the whole enterprise was. But it still made for a pleasant evening...
ReplyDeleteNameless Gangster is not bad. Wish Japan could do something like that.
ReplyDeleteWings of the Kirin suffers from using one too many contrivances to manufacture a conclusion that falls apart when you think about it.