While most films are derivative, few wear its derivative nature with pride like Returner, 2002 Japanese science fiction film directed by Takashi Yamakazaki. The plot begins in October 2002 when Myamoto (played by Takeshi Kineshiro), Chinese-born Japanese hitman tries to take out Mizoguchi (played by Goro Kishitani), vicious gang boss specialised in child trafficking. For Myamoto the issue is very personal, because fifteen years ago, as a child, he witnessed Miyamoto kill his best friend in order harvest his organs. Myamoto’s plans are temporarily thwarted by arrival of Milly (played by Anne Suzuki), teenage girl who literally comes out of thin air. He shoots her by accident, but Milly is saved by metal plate in her coat. Later she tells him that she is actually a time traveller and that she was sent from 2084 Tibet in a desperate bid to save humanity from “Daggra” aliens that devastated Earth in long war. The idea is to prevent the war by finding single “Daggra” whose ship has crash landed in Japan and stop him from signalling his location to invasion fleet. Myamoto at first doesn’t believe her, but changes his mind when he learns that Mizoguchi apparently wants to take possession of the alien and his space vessel, held in secret science laboratory.
Takashi Yamazaki is considered to be one of the top Japanese film makers with his speciality being science fiction, genre he grew fond by watching 1970s classics like Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind at his early age. Judging by Returner, however, you might say that Yamazaki’s main source of inspiration comes from a decade later and includes Spielberg’s E.T. and Cameron’s The Terminator, with a little bits of Carpenter’s Escape from New York. Script heavily borrows plot elements and, in some cases, even the visuals from those films, while at the same time using the iconography of 1980s Hong Kong heroic bloodshed action films. Mix of so many elements can sometimes produce disastrous results, but Yamazaki succeeds to make film successful, mainly by maintaining fast pace tempo and energetic direction of action scenes, accompanied by soundtrack of Akihiko Matsumoto, which is at times melancholic and at times serves as semi-ironic commentary, reminding audience not to take the film too seriously. Yamazaki, who, apart from directing, also had successful career as special effects supervisors, also makes Returner look as spectacular as its big budget Hollywood counterparts. The cast is very good, especially young Anne Suzuki as charming young heroine and Goro Kishitani as despicable villain. Although, like so many time travel films, Returner doesn’t handle Grandfather Paradox that well, it is still easily digestible and mostly entertaining piece of science fiction cinema.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
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