One of the worst movies I've ever seen

Best movie ever!

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

If You have been Caught Unawares of Writer/Director/Producer Sam Fuller, a B-Movie Maverick from the "Silver Age" of the Hollywood "Studio System", Get with it Soldier.Highly Influential, Unbridled (as much as anyone could be at the time), a Man's Man but Sensitive, Sympathetic, and more than Aware of the Foibles of the Human Condition, Fuller could and did, make Movies that were Socially Conscious, Entertaining, and Enlightening on Shoe-String Budgets and was Constantly At Odds with the Tinseltown Establishment.The Cigar Chomping Creator is Attempting to Heal Japanese/American Relations Single-Handedly in this Unequaled Film.In His always Less than Subtle Style, Fuller Unleashed this "In Your Face" Reverse Racism Movie about a Japanese Cop (how many of those were on screen during and the years following WWII?...answer Zero) who Falls In Love Returned with an American "Dame".James Shigeta is the Actor and Victoria Shaw is the Girl. Both give Outstanding Performances in this Far From the Main Stream Movie.The Film Feels like a Grind-House Girlie Flick in the Beginning as "Sugar Torch" (Gloria Pall) is Chased from a Strip Club into the Night on a Busy L.A. Street Half-Naked, is Murdered, Gun Downed by Her Stalker and the Noirish Aspects Begin.The Film can Comfortably be Labeled Film-Noir because of its Characters, Subject Matter, and Overall Seediness. But Wait...there's More.This Strange Movie Experience takes Considerable Effort in Invading the Japanese-American Culture with Respect to Religion (Buddhist), Music, Dance, and More, with much Screen Time. There are Temples, Kundu, and Kindness appropriated.Glen Corbett is the American "Joe" and is Serious, Squared Jawed and Shigeta's Roommate. The Triangular Rival, but More than Close Friend of Our Asian Law Enforcer. Anna Lee as "Mac" also makes an Impression as a "Bohemian" Artist Alcoholic who Smokes a "Sam Fuller" Cigar and is the Fulcrum for all the Frenzy Swirling around in this Bizarre B-Movie Breakthrough.Saying More would be Saying too Much, but not Enough Can Be Said of the Sam Fuller Touch and Tone that makes this Film what it is. Another Example why Fuller is so Revered Today by Film Artist around the Globe. He was an Uncompromising Unequaled Player in a Game where He Broke All the Rules before the Code Broke Down.

Stealing scenes on Main St. in LA and set decorating with things from home Sam Fuller puts together a mildly suspenseful thriller involving a stripper, tai kwon doe and the underlying theme of racial bias in The Crimson Kimona. The acting is a touch wooden but the dynamic between detectives played by Glenn Corbett and James Shigeta is filled with unexpected twists and questions about perception that Fuller blends firmly into the mix.Stripper Sugar Torch is gunned down in uniform on the streets of LA by an unknown assailant. Detective team Charlie Bancroft and Joe Kojaqu are assigned to the case with both falling for Christine (Joanna Shaw) an artist involved in the investigation and also a target. As the case proceeds a rift between Bancroft and Kojagu over Christine with inferences of bigotry takes center stage. Kimono has Fuller's usual threadbare set and design look (supplemented by some nifty camera movement) where all expenses are spared but it is his his pulpish sensibility and provocative script addressing the spectra of inherent racism in society then coupling it to the solving of the murder to bring about its denouement that keeps the film taut most of the way.

Simon Fuller (The Big Red One, White Dog) opens his film with Sugar (Gloria Pall) running away from a gunman, her 39 inch chest bouncing in a bra. Too late, he is successful, and so begins a film noir with two detectives Charlie (Glenn Corbett) and Joe (James Shigeta - Takagi in Die Hard) in hot pursuit. Both Corbett and Shigeta made their acting debuts in this film.This is Fuller in his prime, and it makes for an exciting detective story, mixing Japanese and Korean cultures and customs in Los Angeles in the period.Anna Lee, who played Lila Quartermaine on "General Hospital" and "Port Charles," really stole the show when she appeared on screen.In the midst of the investigation, both detectives fall in love with the same woman (Victoria Shaw). Race comes to the forefront in a dramatic way.Filmed against the backdrop of Little Tokyo and a Japanese street festival, it was an excellent film.

The Crimson Kimono is often labelled film noir. I wouldn't agree with this; it has some elements of the genre, but it's clear that director Samuel Fuller had very different intentions for his film. The film is, at its heart, a murder mystery thriller; but more important than this is the relationship between the two central characters and there's a strong anti-racist theme also. The film is set in the Japanese quarter of Los Angeles and the film begins by depicting a murder of a stripper at a club in the area. A pair of detectives, Charlie Bancroft and Joe Kojaku (also very close friends) are called in to investigate and during their investigation, they come across a female painter that turns out to be a key witness in the case; and Charlie falls instantly in love. However, the witness has more of a rapport with Joe; and this creates trouble he believes his race to be an issue, and there's also the problem arising from the fact that his partner has designs on marrying the girl in question.The style of the film is one of the things I liked most about it. It does feature the classic film noir atmosphere, but it's jazzed up a bit and this sets it apart from the rest of the genre. The investigation plot was the most interesting part of the film for me and it flows well during the first half of the film; but the director seems more interested in the relationship between his central characters and unfortunately the film veers off topic on rather a lot of occasions, which spoilt it somewhat for me. The characters themselves are well written and portrayed, and the major ones are interesting in their own right. A big part of the film is devoted to the whole race issue, and this was the least interesting part for me. I've always found this subject to be dull anyway, and the way it is explored here is not particularly interesting (unlike the way it was done in White Dog). Overall, this is certainly an interesting film; Samuel Fuller has deviated from the 'usual' noir path and while I did not like certain elements of the film, it is at least worth a look.