Aragami/2LDK Duel Project

The story goes, producer Shinya Kawai made a drunken challenge to his director friends Ryuhei Kitamura and Yukihiko Tsutsumi.  Who could make the better film starring only 2 battling principal characters, in 1 set, and filming for only a week.  The two films that resulted Aragami by Ryuhei Kitamura and 2LDK by Yukihiko Tsutsumi are very different but an equally special result as could ever be hoped for from a night of drinking.

Aragami finds two badly wounded samurai arriving at a small temple only to be brought back to health by a mysterious swordsman.  As per the rules you can see where this is going, more so if you’re familiar with Ryuhei Kitamura.  His films range from spectacular crap like Versus and Azumi to spectacularly crap like Godzilla: Final Wars, which makes Aragami actually the classiest work of his I’ve seen.  There’s a great element of mystery and while the twists might not be so shocking when they come brilliantly choreographed fights and some barbed dialogue make this far more interesting than you may suspect.  There are a couple of occasions where Kitamura’s affection for crap shine through (I could’ve done without the epilogue) but this was an enjoyable surprise.

2LDK is a very different beast indeed, two aspiring actresses seemingly alike in only profession are chasing a crucial role that will either entirely validate their chosen life choices or crush their dreams, oh and they share an apartment.  When they separately arrive home from the audition petty arguments about shampoo and food develop into a much deeper assassination of each other’s character.  This is no tense drama and soon enough the house becomes full of prospective weapons.  I am completely unfamiliar with Yukihiko Tsutsumi but on this form I’ll be on the lookout for other films.  Please stick any recommendations in the comments.

Amazon will sell you the double-pack for a mere £9.

Aragami 7/10

2lDK 8/10