Ichi The Killer is Extreme Cinema at its best. For sure, the movie is not for everybody - it features scenes of brutal torture, rape, BDSM and much blood. This is no popcorn movie (indeed, no food is recommended as you may struggle to keep it down!) and there are no signposts to guide you through. Utmost concentration is required and you will need to have your brain in top gear if you are to keep track of the plot. Ichi is a complicated movie and takes time to get going. If you are prepared to give your time and efforts however, you will be richly awarded. It is difficult to describe the storyline without spoiling the plot, but the movie is basically a story of a man who was bullied as a child (and also witnessed a brutal rape) and sets out to rid the world of all bullies. His chosen method is to slice the bad guys open using a lethal blade concealed in his shoe. The effects are very comic-book in style (indeed, there is an anime version of the movie also available) but at the same time very real and disturbing. I would not recommend this film to anybody who has never seen any Extreme Asian cinema before or to anybody who is not familiar with the narrative tools of foreign and/or extreme cinema. If you like your violence Hollywood style, stay away from this movie. The same applies if you are not prepared to work hard to appreciate Ichi The Killer. It is worth the brain power and is a film that you will keep coming back to - not least to try and work out what on earth was going on! You have been warned :)