The 1970s were such a diverse and varied decade for cinema. It would give rise to the summer blockbuster (Star Wars & Jaws), get wracked with paranoia in its conspiracy thrillers (The Parallax View & The Conversation) and no longer see the world through the rose-tinted glasses that had filled so much of the worlds pop culture to this point, thanks to political corruption (Watergate) & War (Vietnam). The world was not a happy place, and cinema reflected that perfectly, quite unlike any other decade previously. A prime example of this was the popularity of the disaster movie.
Films like The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno had managed to capture many a Hollywood star in the unrelenting grip of human hubris as feats of engineering became our downfall (Airport & The Doomsday Flight) or Mother Nature would take her rightful revenge (Earthquake & The Swarm). With this success, film industries from around the world took notice, and Japan was no exception.
At this point in the 1970s, Toei Company was at the forefront of high-octane action spectaculars and gritty Yakuza features. With stars such as Ken Takakura and Sonny Chiba in the books, these were manly films aimed at “manly men”. However, having noticed the success of the American disaster movie, and not wishing to miss out on this phenomenon, production started on The Bullet Train, using their very own world-famous engineering achievement front and centre.
Taking that tried and tested template from their Hollywood counterparts, Toei gathered together a multitude of their contracted stars, including the aforestated Ken Takakura and Sonny Chiba, but also joined by the endlessly talented Ken Utsui. However, whilst their names would always adorn the marquee, The Bullet Train is very much an ensemble piece.
The Bullet Train is far more measured than many of its contemporaries, but it’s is a film that captures the mood of the world at the time, just like all great cinema should.
Drawing immediate similarities to films such as The Taking of Pelham 123 and as an undoubted source of inspiration for Speed, The Bullet Train isn’t all whizz bang like Uncle Sam, it takes a more methodical approach, setting up character and motivations, which goes a long way to earning its whopping 152 minute run time (original Japanese cut). This sometimes puts it at odds with the films it is trying to emulate, but there is such a vast cast of characters to get to know that getting the time we have with them rarely feels wasted or drawn out.
This isn’t always the case, as there are a few scenes that feel shoehorned in and could have done with another pass through the editing room, but with the film only being completed 3 days before its nationwide release, it does carry that sense of hurried chaos and a desire to fit in everything that was in the script.
There is meticulous attention to detail when it comes to the railway system in Japan, something that anyone with an ounce of knowledge of Japan will know that it is something that they take a great deal of pride in. There is a love and affection for this institution, but it is never blinded by it, regularly bringing into question the motivations of all that make the decision about those passengers on board (both official and nefarious). However, this extends to other parts of Japanese society, with it being critical of the effectiveness of the police force or the gung-ho economics that prospered for some but left so many losing everything.
With a host of extra features, this latest release from Eureka Entertainment is a marked improvement on any other previous UK release. With commentaries, alternative cuts (a global dubbed 2hr cut… but alas no 100-minute French Cut that was released under the title Super Express 109, a cut of the film that many Japanese critics prefer), interviews and video essays, The Bullet Train is far more measured than many of its contemporaries, but it’s is a film that captures the mood of the world at the time, just like all great cinema should.
The Bullet Train is out now on Blu-Ray from Eureka Entertainment
Ben’s Archive: The Bullet Train
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