First there was Death Note, and now Takeshi Kaneshiro has decided to act as a death god to mark his comeback in the Japanese film industry (his next Japanese film, K-20: Kaijin Niju Menso Den, is in production stage).
One would expect somebody like Takeshi to take up a heartthrob
role to mark his sudden switch back to Japanese film industry, but instead he
took up the unglam role of a death god and turned it to something pretty hot in
Accuracy of Death (I mean after being constantly exposed to Death Note’s Ryu
Shinigami, this can come as quite a surprise).
With the company of his dog, Chiba
(Takeshi Kaneshiro) appears seven days before his subject to observe to decide
whether to 'proceed' or 'suspend' with the person’s death. Accuracy of Death
focuses on his decision made for Kazue Fujiki (Manami Konishi), who works as a
customer service officer in a manufacturing company. With Kazue who believes
that she is a jinx, will Chiba 'proceed' with her death or give her a chance to renew her life? Her fate, just
like Chiba’s other subjects, will be
decided by a question: “What do you think of death?”
I give a standing ovation to the scriptwriter. Lines like,
“The blue sky is not special, but important. Maybe death is like that too,” is
so thought provoking that you can find yourself thinking about death even after
you leave the theatre.
The cast did their roles well too. Takeshi, as usual, looked
good to most of us (except me - he just does not look Japanese enough to make
me go into a ‘fan-girl’ mode). But, I have to applaud his exceptionally good
acting skill for this, compared to his last Japanese movie, The Returner
(2003). Expect plenty of comedic acts from Takeshi, like when he confuses
himself about the difference between “picking up (things)” and “picking up
(girls)”.
Manami Konishi played her role as Kazue rather ordinarily -
not good, not bad - nothing much to comment because though she plays the main
character, she only had a few scenes. I expected a lot from Manami because I
was memerised by her demure personality acting in one of her recent Japanese
dramas, Ashita no Kita Yoshio. Sadly, that part of her did not shine this time
round (but, do check out the insert song sung by her - Sunny Day).
Initially, I was expecting romance from that storyline,
though the title of the movie gives off a horror kind of feel. However don’t
expect that much of it except for a few of the nifty glances exchanged between Chiba
and Kazue on some occasions.
The plot went a little haywire in the middle when a few
other random characters were thrown into the mix. But, eventually, they all
came together. Also, the ending lacks unpredictability, though did I hear someone
gasp in surprise (wonder why when it was so obvious).
The messiness in the middle of the plot could have been
saved if the transitions took place in a clearer manner. If only the duration
of some close-up shots were shortened and the redundant scenes cut off (like
every time the dog goes “So it is 'proceed' right?" and Chiba
replies, “Probably.” It constantly gave me a sense of déjà vu).
I won’t pay to watch this for I was practically yawning my
way through those long camera shots which totally spoilt the excitement. However
if you are Takeshi’s fan, please do, because the camera angles were
advantageous in bringing out his suave good looks and I promise your heart will
melt every time he nods his head to the music plugged into his ears. Either
that, or maybe it is true when they say absence makes the heart grow fonder.
For a preview of Takeshi’s ‘death-godly’ look:
P.S. What’s with death gods liking worldly things? Death
Note’s Ryu is addicted to red apples, Accuracy of Death’s Chiba
loves music.
First there was Death Note, and now Takeshi Kaneshiro has decided to act as a death god to mark his comeback in the Japanese film industry (his next Japanese film, K-20: Kaijin Niju Menso Den, is in production stage).
Manami Konishi played her role as Kazue rather ordinarily -
not good, not bad - nothing much to comment because though she plays the main
character, she only had a few scenes. I expected a lot from Manami because I
was memerised by her demure personality acting in one of her recent Japanese
dramas, Ashita no Kita Yoshio. Sadly, that part of her did not shine this time
round (but, do check out the insert song sung by her - Sunny Day).
The messiness in the middle of the plot could have been
saved if the transitions took place in a clearer manner. If only the duration
of some close-up shots were shortened and the redundant scenes cut off (like
every time the dog goes “So it is 'proceed' right?" and Chiba
replies, “Probably.” It constantly gave me a sense of déjà vu). 
(0 vote)
