Oh thank you, that is very kind of you. However, our yesterday's conversation was a good omen because after so many weeks looking for it, I finally got my hands on a copy. So the day started with a good tip and ended with a good gift. It seems that you carry a lucky charm which somehow rubbed off on me ::giggle:: (๑•ㅂ•)و✧
Yup, yup, yup ... you're absolutely right on that point. That is why I am still determined to find that movie and judge its quality on a personal level. Sensei did co-write its scenario after all ... so this factor should be enticing by itself.
Really?!!! I am so happy because you told me that he has another manga. I was disappointed when I checked his online biography and they listed Shamo as his only work! Of course, he is a screenwriter and a film director so he wouldn't have too much time to dedicate to drawing. I'll make sure to check both your suggestions. Thanks a lot (bye the way, there is also a film version of this manga. I've been trying to find it but maybe it isn't that good because it scored only 5.5/ 10 on rotten tomatoes (︶︿︶) )
Of course be my luck charm and rub your luck on me as much you can (⌒▽⌒). This is the greedy me lol
About the movie, well ... nothing can compare to the manga! At the beginning I was a little bit disappointed because I thought that something was lacking: an angle which makes the story much more coherent and compelling in the viewer's eyes.
Of course, there was a time constraint (1 hour 40 minutes) so the story was condensed and some of the characters were recast and new elements were introduced into the movie.
For starters, we only got to see snippets from Ryu's time in the reformatory though the scriptwriters introduced a scene where Ryu was asking for help but the institution's principal was just harboring pure hatred towards him so his plea was denied naturally.
When Ryu gets out and he finds Natsumi, the escort girl, well in that part she was neither raped nor killed. She became his girlfriend but was injured but not fatally before the final match between Ryu and Sugawara.
In the movie, there was a different setting in regard to how Ryu became aware of Sugawara. The scriptwriters made it so that he is chased by the bad guys in the stadium where the latter was fighting. I thought that part was good because he looses the fight, gets knocked off, humiliated before the audience as his pants fell down and to top it all, he literally gets stepped on by Sugawara, his fiancée and the audience. Then he is thrown out as a worthless cloth.
This element is used to justify the grudge that is going to grow in his heart against Sugawara but luckily as the story progressed he just scared Megumi to provoke Sugawara without raping her.
In the movie, a greater part is given to both Kensuke and Kurokawa. In the manga, there was much more people who helped Ryu whereas in the movie he had only Kurokawa, Natsumi and the guy who lost his arm in the manga.
Of course, Ryu was portrayed as a vicious guy as much as he was in the manga. His treacherous side was shown. I thought that most viewers won't feel sympathy or be enthusiastic towards him until the end.
I haven't finished reading the manga yet but in the movie there was a huge twist. Natsumi, the sister, is revealed to have a mental illness and as Ryu was fighting his last battle, there was some sort of a telepathic communication between him and his sister, so she remembers that it was she who killed their parents. Ryo took the blame only to protect her. Sugawara won the fight naturally but Ryo gets back on his feet as the two Natsumi cheer for him in Natsumi's room in the hospital. This was really the icing on the cake for me. I loved the final scenes along with the soundtrack which was used at the end of the movie.
It is not disappointing at all, if we take into consideration that the main actor (Shawn Yue) portrayed Ryu very well (I thought that it was really him) and the fighting scenes were awesome. I hope that you'll get the chance to watch the movie too. Then it will be your turn to tell me about your impressions ╮(￣▽￣)╭