Lack of good storyline.

A different way of telling a story

The film was still a fun one that will make you laugh and have you leaving the theater feeling like you just stole something valuable and got away with it.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Now here's a brief little plot description I'm sure will sound familiar to most people! Terrorists plant a bomb somewhere on a crowded public transportation vehicle. The device activates itself once the vehicle reaches a certain speed and will explode if the vehicle lowers its speed beneath this mark. The authorities as well as the driver are aware of the danger, but a ransom needs to be paid before the terrorists gives the exact location of the bomb. Now where have I heard that before? Hey wait a minute, it's that movie "Speed" with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock! Well sure, 99% of the world will be able to guess that, but sadly only a miserable 1% (or even less) know that "Speed" is, in fact, some sort of remake of this modestly produced but hugely exhilarating Japanese 70's disaster flick. Here in this case, the public transportation vehicle is an elite high-speed express train instead of a bus, so there are even more possibilities to hide the explosives. There are two versions of "Bullet Train" available, albeit both of them are quite obscure, but they're a world of difference. The international version is barely 90 minutes long and pretty much cuts all the background and intrigues surrounding the act of terrorism. The Japanese version runs slightly over 150 minutes and is the complete opposite! In this extended version you get to know literally everything about the terrorists, including how they got acquainted and even what they prefer to have for lunch. I'm usually quite allergic to long (2+ hours) movies, but I read that the heavily cut version comes across as incoherent and clumsy, and also that it doesn't feature the social criticism and melodrama. This may very well be true, but the 150 minutes slightly exaggerates with illustrating background stories and dramatic subplots. At numerous times during the film, it even felts like the booby trapped train was merely an unimportant sub plot while the real movie revolved on the life story of main terrorist Tetsuo Okita. Still, it's a compelling and at times adrenalin-rushing adventure with a solid script and terrific performances. Ken Takakura excels as the embittered terrorist and martial arts legend Sonny Chiba is very impressive in the for him very unusual role of ordinary machinist. One thing about "Bullet Train" I will surely NEVER forget for as long as I live is how this movie features the single most worst case of bad luck ever! After he received the ransom, the terrorists reveals that he left a bag in a restaurant. In the bag there's a map with a detailed drawing of where exactly in the train the bomb is located. The authorities rush to the restaurant, but notice upon arrival that the place just burned to the ground due to a short circuit! What are the odds of that happening?

Shrewd criminal mastermind Tetsuo Okita (superbly played by Ken Takakura) plants a bomb on a high-speed Japanese Shinkansen bullet train that's wired to explode if the train goes under 80 kilometers per hour. Stalwart Captain Aoki (the always cool Sonny Chiba) has to keep the express hurtling along at a breakneck velocity and prevent the 1,500 passengers from succumbing to panic while the authorities led by no-nonsense Transit Chief Kuromochi (an excellent performance by Ken Utsui ) try to find and apprehend the wily and evasive Okita before he gets away. Director/co-screenwriter Junya Sato wrings plenty of nerve-jangling suspense from the riveting and inspired premise, maintains a constant snappy pace throughout, stages the action scenes with substantial rip-snorting brio, and elicits sound acting from a sturdy cast. Masahiko Iimura's crisp, gliding, glossy widescreen photography and Hachiro Aoyama's stirring, funky-groovin' score further enhance the overall sterling quality of this bang-up gripping and rousing picture. Similar to "Speed," it's a far superior film: tough, gritty and serious, with no silly humor or icky-cute sentiment to diminish the unsparing severity of the gut-wrenching tension. Only the poor dubbing detracts a tad from this otherwise on the money tense, potent and absorbing pip.

I watch this movie in DVD. This movie was produced before I am born, I was very exciting this movie. Because this movie music is good. It cannot believe that it is the old movie. Ken Takakura who is performed to this movie is the actor whom I like most. Because He is the greatest actor in Japan. His performance is very groovy. I knew him with the "Black rain" Because as for the reason where I looked at this movie, he was performed.

This movie was special in having an extremely interesting plot and fast paced action. The cast is excellent with then major Japanese star Sony Chiba playing a minor role. The mastermind, played by Ken Takakura, is cool, calculating, and very human as opposed to the plain evil vilains typical in those days. The action is excellent and credible in a time when special effects were not computer-generated. I'm convinced that the plot for the movie "Speed" was lifted from this movie. It's worth seeing. I'm currently looking for a copy on VHS or DVD but to no avail. "Help!"