Sukiyaki Western Django

Sukiyaki Western Django

2007

Directed by Takashi Miike

This is a very stylish film that is a mixture of Japanese samurai and western film genres. Miike pulls this off very successfully. The mixture of swords and guns looks spectacular and there are some great fight scenes that involve them both. The colors of the film are very saturated and alternate between the contrasts of deep red and bright whites. I did enjoy the film. Miike always presents the unexpected and this film was not a disappointment.

Rustin Allison

The Searchers

The Searchers

1956

Directed by John Ford

Well, I was told in one of my film classes that if there is one classic Hollywood western to watch this should be the one. The Searchers is a much darker film than I had originally imagined. John Wayne is the main character but he comes off as much more of an anti-hero than I would have imagined. His character is racist and relentless in his pursuit of his kidnapped niece. The Searchers left me feeling a bit strange after watching it. I think that this mainly had to do with the portrayal of Native Americans. Yes, they are stereotyped, but I think that this was John Ford's attempt to show how racist people have been towards the Native Americans. Most of the characters (even the sympathetic ones) has such a hatred to the Comanche tribe that they are in conflict with during the course of the film.

Rustin Allison