142 minutes, 35mm, in Japanese with English subtitles
Directed by: Ryuhei Kitamura
Starring: Aya Ueto, Jo Odagiri, Yoshio Harada, Aya Okumoto

Showtimes: FRI June 25 - 9:00pm; SUN June 27 - 6:00pm [BUY TICKETS]

If this were a fairy tale, it would certainly be Grimm. Full of guts and grue, but with enough moral weight to keep its flights of fancy firmly grounded, AZUMI is slathered in feedback and awash in camera pyrotechnics. The brittle irony of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill doesn't stand a chance against the volcanic emotions of Ryuhei Kitamura's revitalized rock n'roll samurai flick. Based on a popular manga that sold 8 million copies, AZUMI is the story of a bunch of frisky kids, sequestered in the mountains and taught to fight by greybeard, Jiji. Before he sends them into the world as his enforcers - fighting for truth, justice and the eternal rule of the emperor - he gives them one last test: kill each other. Unable to disobey, they do, and the survivors stumble forth, shell-shocked, brainwashed, and with no skills except killing. The one exception is the sparky little samurai grrl, Azumi, wearing short shorts and miniskirts, sporting a lethal glare and trying to preserve the last scraps of her own humanity against tidal waves of sword-waving mercenaries.

AZUMI is the latest film from Japan 's new adrenaline king of pop cinema, Ryuhei Kitamura. From his first homemade, independent features (featuring gangsters, zombies and big samurai swords) he has progressed to international cult status with stylish, no-holds-barred features (also featuring gangsters, zombies and big samurai swords). 2003 has seen him enter the big time with a directing deal at Miramax, and prestigious,  large-scale releases of his films in Japan . His previous movie, Versus (part of last year's New York Asian Film Festival) was a homemade yakuza-vs.-living-dead battle royale. Vigorously directed, it was accused of being a little thin on the story. Kitamura addresses that criticism with a vengeance, fattening up AZUMI on bloody emotions, broken hearts, and shattered innocence, while still finding time for a gallery of grotesque villains and 200-against-1 samurai battles. As the film's producer says, "AZUMI is not an awards type film - We do not ask to put it in competition anywhere.  We just want people to enjoy it."