One Cut of the Dead (2017) is a Japanese comedy film written and directed by Shin’ichirΕ Ueda and produced by Koji Ichihashi. The film stars Takayuki as Higurashi, Yuzuki Akiyama as Chinatsu, Harumi Shuhama as Nao and Kazuaki Nagaya as Ko.
The film starts with a 37-minute continuous scene whereby impassioned director, Higurashi, is shooting an unsophisticated, low budget zombie movie in an abandoned warehouse type building, rumoured to have been used by the Japanese military in World War II. Things quickly go awry when we learn real zombies have been let loose into the facility causing havoc among the cast.
One Cut of the Dead is funny in its satirical and absurd nature. The first half of the film is not necessarily the breeziest to watch, and requires some effort to stick with it, but the pay off in the second half is well worth it. The film in its entirety is low budget (made for $25,000), but if necessity is the mother of invention β it makes for some really funny scenes. One Cut of the Dead is clever and sharp, and absolutely charming.
The central focus of the film is far removed from anything relating to zombies, human experimentation, or the rogue appearance of axes. Without spoiling the film, I would invite you to watch this one with an open-mind and wholesome expectations.
I would recommend One Cut of the Dead to anyone who likes comedies, and being in the niche genre of movies-about-movies, I imagine this film would appeal to film buffs and cinephiles everywhere. It’s definitely worth seeking out and now sits proudly in my collection of horror-comedies. With a little patience, I’m sure you’ll enjoy One Cut of the Dead as much as I did.
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