Versus (film)

VERSUS
Directed by	Ryuhei Kitamura
Produced by	Hideo Nishimura
Written by	Ryuhei Kitamura Yūdai Yamaguchi
Starring	Tak Sakaguchi Hideo Sakaki Chieko Misaka Kenji Matsuda
Music by	Nobuhiko Morino
Cinematography	Takumi Furuya
Editing by	Shuichi Kakesu
Distributed by	Media Blasters (US)
Release date(s)	October 29, 2000 February 20, 2002
Running time	119 min / Ultimate Ver. 153 min.
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese

Versus (VERSUS -ヴァーサス-, Vāsasu) is a 2000 Japanese action/horror film directed by Ryuhei Kitamura.

Synopsis

After escaping from police custody, Prisoner KSC2-303 and a fellow escapee join with a group of mobsters in a forest that is one of the 666 portals that act as a connection between this world and the next, called "The Forest of Resurrection." After being attacked by the mobsters, Prisoner KSC2-303 flees with a girl, whom the mobsters kidnapped for unknown reasons, into the forest and they give chase. While in this forest KSC2-303 begins to forget things and recall strange events he's never experienced. Meanwhile, the mobsters are forced to contend with all of the men they have killed and buried in the forest as they become reanimated as zombies. The leader of the mobsters appears and speaks cryptically of the power of the "Forest of Resurrection" and begins to seek out KSC2-303 and the girl as well. Upon encountering the man, KSC2-303 is reminded of his past life and the past conflict with this man and of his destiny in this life: to protect the girl from the man. This is an ages-old conflict that has been recurring in a cycle involving all of their reincarnations.

The Ultimate Versus

In 2004, Kitamura and most of the original cast and crew went back into the woods and filmed new scenes to further realize Kitamura’s vision of the film. Namely, to bring a fuller version of a film that was limited by budget, time and technology. Yûji Shimomura did not return as the action director. Instead, Tak Sakaguchi, Prisoner KSC2-303, took the mantle of action director and created sequences that fill out the action in the new version of the film.

Released in a 3-disc DVD set by Media Blasters, over 75% of the film now feature some sort of reworking, be it color correction, new music, added action sequences, or full scene replacement. The result is a fuller story and character development, with added effects such as more blood in certain scenes, sparks during swordfights, and so on.

Cast

• Tak Sakaguchi as Prisoner KSC2-303
• Hideo Sakaki as The Man
• Chieko Misaka as The Girl
• Kenji Matsuda as Yakuza Leader with butterfly knife
• Yuichiro Arai as Motorcycle-riding yakuza with revolver
• Minoru Matsumoto as Crazy yakuza with amulet
• Kazuhito Ohba as Yakuza with glasses
• Takehiro Katayama as Red-haired assassin
• Ayumi Yoshihara as Long-haired female assassin
• Shōichirō Masumoto as One-handed cop
• Toshiro Kamiaka as Samurai warrior
• Yukihito Tanikado as Cop with Barrett
• Hoshimi Asai as Short-haired female assassin
• Ryosuke Watabe as Yakuza zombie in alligator-skin coat
• Motonari Komiya as Other prisoner

Remake

In 2008, around the release of his American debut Midnight Meat Train, director Ryuhei Kitamura began mentioning a possible American remake of Versus. Subsequent rumors suggest that the film will take place during the same time period as the original film, at one of the "666 portals to the other side" located in the United States. As of yet, no more specific details have been made public.

External links

• Official Film Website - In Japanese
• Versus at the Internet Movie Database
• VERSUS at AllRovi
• "ＶＥＲＳＵＳ" (in Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. http://www.jmdb.ne.jp/2001/dy002470.htm. Retrieved 2007-07-19. 

Reviews

• Snowblood Apple
• Nippon Cinema
• Midnight Eye
• Asian Cinema Drifter