is a Japanese film director, film producer and screenwriter. He has directed over one hundred theatrical, video, and television productions since his debut in 1991. His films run through a variety of different genres, and range from

violent Violence is the use of physical force so as to injure, abuse, damage, or destroy. Other definitions are also used, such as the World Health Organization's definition of violence as "the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened o ...

and bizarre to dramatic and family-friendly movies. He is a controversial figure in the contemporary Japanese cinema industry, with several of his films being criticised for their extreme graphic violence. Some of his best known films are ''Audition'', ''Ichi the Killer'', ''

Gozu is a 2003 Japanese horror comedy crime film directed by Takashi Miike and written by Sakichi Sato. The film blends yakuza stories with ghost stories, bizarre vignettes, and urban legends. Plot Ozaki (Aikawa), a mentally unstable yakuza, kills a ...

'', ''One Missed Call'', the '' Dead or Alive'' trilogy, and various remakes: ''Graveyard of Honor'', ''

Hara-kiri , sometimes referred to as hara-kiri (, , a native Japanese kun reading), is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honour but was also practised by other Japanese people d ...

'' and ''13 Assassins''.

Early life

Miike was born in Yao,

Osaka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture ...

, to a '' Nikkei'' family originally from the

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture to ...

, on the island of

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surroun ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, his grandfather was stationed in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

, and his father was born in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

in today's

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. His father worked as a welder and his mother as a seamstress. Although he claimed to have attended classes only rarely, he graduated from Yokohama Vocational School of Broadcast and Film (Yokohama Hōsō Eiga Senmon Gakkō) under the guidance of renowned filmmaker Shohei Imamura, the founder and Dean of that institution.

Career

Miike's first films were television productions, but he also began directing several

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy was p ...

V-Cinema Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy was p ...

releases. Miike still directs V-Cinema productions intermittently due to the creative freedom afforded by the less stringent

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

of the medium and the riskier content that the

producers Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

will allow. Miike's theatrical debut was the film ''The Third Gangster'' (''Daisan no gokudō''), but ''

Shinjuku Triad Society is a 1995 Japanese film directed by Takashi Miike. The film is one of the earliest examples of Miike's use of extreme violence and unusual characterization, two aspects he would become notorious for. The film is part of the Black Society trilo ...

'' (1995) was his first theatrical release to gain public attention. The film showcased his extreme style and his recurring themes, and its success allowed him to work on higher-budgeted pictures. ''Shinjuku Triad Society'' was the first film in what is labeled his "Black Society Trilogy", which also includes ''

Rainy Dog is a 1997 Japanese film directed by Takashi Miike, completely set and filmed in Taipei, Taiwan. Although the movie contains a fair amount of controversial material, the overall theme of the movie concerns the unlikely relationships formed betwe ...

'' (1997) and ''

Ley Lines Ley lines () are straight alignments drawn between various historic structures and prominent landmarks. The idea was developed in early 20th-century Europe, with ley line believers arguing that these alignments were recognised by ancient socie ...

'' (1999). He gained international fame in 2000 when his romantic horror film ''

Audition An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performer. It typically involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously memorized and rehearsed solo piece or by performing a work or piece giv ...

'' (1999), his violent yakuza epic '' Dead or Alive'' (1999), and his controversial adaptation of the manga ''

Ichi the Killer Ichi the Killer may refer to: * ''Ichi the Killer'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film based on the manga series of the same name * ''Ichi the Killer'' (manga), a manga series written and illustrated by Hideo Yamamoto {{disambig ...

'' played at international film festivals. He has since gained a strong

cult following A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

in the

West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...

that is growing with the increase in

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

releases of his works. His film '' Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai'' premiered In Competition at the

2011 Cannes Film Festival The 64th Cannes Film Festival was held from 11 to 22 May 2011. American actor Robert De Niro served as the president of the jury for the main competition and French filmmaker Michel Gondry headed the jury for the short film competition. South Ko ...

. His 2013 film '' Straw Shield'' was nominated for the

Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

at the

2013 Cannes Film Festival The 66th Cannes Film Festival took place in Cannes, France, from 15 to 26 May 2013. Steven Spielberg was the head of the jury for the main competition. New Zealand film director Jane Campion was the head of the jury for the Cinéfondation and S ...

Themes of his work

Miike achieved notoriety for depicting shocking scenes of

extreme violence Graphic violence refers to the depiction of especially vivid, brutal and realistic acts of violence in visual media such as film, television, and video games. It may be real, simulated live action, or animated. Intended limitedly for mature ...

and sexual perversions. Many of his films contain graphic and lurid bloodshed, often portrayed in an over-the-top, cartoonish manner. Much of his work depicts the activities of

criminals In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

(especially

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ...

) or concern themselves with

gaijin is a Japanese word for foreigners and non-Japanese citizens in Japan, specifically being applied to foreigners of non-Japanese ethnicity and those from the Japanese diaspora who are not Japanese citizens. The word is composed of two kanji: and ...

, non-Japanese or foreigners living in Japan. He is known for his dark sense of humor and for pushing the boundaries of

as far as they will go. Miike has directed films in a range of genres. He has created lighthearted children's films (''

Ninja Kids!!! is a 2011 Japanese family-oriented comedy film directed by Takashi Miike. The film is live-action adaptation of the Japanese anime series ''Nintama Rantarō''. The film stars Seishiro Kato as Rantaro who is sent to a ninja training school by his ...

'', ''

The Great Yokai War is a 2005 Japanese fantasy film directed by Takashi Miike, produced by Kadokawa Pictures and distributed by Shochiku. The film stars Ryunosuke Kamiki, Hiroyuki Miyasako, Chiaki Kuriyama, and Mai Takahashi. The film focuses largely on creatures ...

''), period pieces (''Sabu''), a

road movie A road movie is a film genre in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the theme of alienatio ...

(''

The Bird People in China is a 1998 Japanese comedy-drama film directed by Takashi Miike from a screenplay by his frequent collaborator Masa Nakamura. The film is considerably more mellow in tone compared to some of the director's more famous works. Plot When Mr. Okam ...

''), a teen drama (''Andromedia''), a farcical musical-comedy-horror (''

The Happiness of the Katakuris is a 2001 Japanese Musical film, musical comedy horror film directed by Takashi Miike, with screenplay by Kikumi Yamagishi. It is loosely based on the South Korean film ''The Quiet Family''. The film is a Surrealism, surreal horror-comedy in the ...

''), video game adaptations ('' Like a Dragon'', ''

Ace Attorney ''Ace Attorney'' is a series of visual novel adventure video games developed by Capcom. With storytelling fashioned after legal dramas, the first entry in the series, ''Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney'', was released in 2001; since then, five f ...

''), and character-driven crime dramas (''

'' and ''

Agitator Agitator may refer to: Politics *A person who carries out political agitation; see agitation *A member of the Agitators, political movement and elected representatives of soldiers during the English Civil War * Levellers, also called Agitators, ...

''). While Miike often creates films that are less accessible and target arthouse audiences and fans of

extreme cinema Extreme cinema is a subgenre used for films distinguished by its use of excessive sex and violence, and such various extreme nature as mutilation and torture. It recently specializes in genre film, mostly both horror and drama. Reception The r ...

, such as ''

Izo ''IZO'' is a 2004 Japanese film directed by Takashi Miike. The main character of the film is Izo Okada (1832–1865), the historical samurai and assassin in 19th-century Japan who was tortured and executed by beheading in Tosa. Izo appeared p ...

'' and the "Box" segment in '' Three... Extremes'', he has created several mainstream and commercial titles such as the

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

One Missed Call One Missed Call may refer to: * ''One Missed Call'' (2003 film), a Japanese horror film, followed by two sequels * ''One Missed Call'' (2008 film), an American remake of the Japanese film * ''One Missed Call'' (TV series), a Japanese television ...

'' and the

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

drama ''The Great Yokai War''. Miike has cited ''

Starship Troopers ''Starship Troopers'' is a military science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein. Written in a few weeks in reaction to the US suspending nuclear tests, the story was first published as a two-part serial in ''The Magazine of F ...

'' as his favorite film. He expressed admiration for directors

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...

Hideo Gosha was a Japanese film director. Born in Arasaka, Tokyo Prefecture, Gosha graduated from high school and served in the Imperial Navy during the Second World War. After earning a business degree at Meiji University, he joined Nippon television as a ...

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...

, and

Paul Verhoeven Paul Verhoeven (; born 18 July 1938) is a Dutch director, producer and screenwriter, active in the Netherlands, France and the United States. His blending of graphic violence and sexual content with social satire is a trademark of both his dram ...

Controversies

Several of Miike's films have been subject to scrutiny due to heavy violence. His 2001 horror film ''

'', adapted from a manga of the same name and starring

Tadanobu Asano , better known by his stage name , is a Japanese actor. He is known for his roles as Dragon Eye Morrison in ''Electric Dragon 80.000 V'', Kakihara in ''Ichi the Killer'', Mamoru Arita in '' Bright Future'', Hattori Genosuke in ''Zatoichi'', Kenj ...

as a

sadomasochistic Sadomasochism ( ) is the giving and receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation. Practitioners of sadomasochism may seek sexual pleasure from their acts. While the terms sadist and masochist refer ...

enforcer, was highly controversial; during its international premiere at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

in 2001, the audience received "barf bags" emblazoned with the film's logo as a promotional

gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand ou ...

. The

British Board of Film Classification The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of f ...

refused to allow the release of the film uncut in the United Kingdom, citing its extreme levels of

sexual violence Sexual violence is any sexual act or attempt to obtain a sexual act by violence or coercion, act to traffic a person, or act directed against a person's sexuality, regardless of the relationship to the victim.World Health Organization., World re ...

towards women; the film required 3 minutes and 15 seconds of mandated cuts to be allowed release. In

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

, 16 minutes and 59 seconds of footage were cut. ''Ichi the Killer'' was also banned outright in Norway, Germany and Malaysia. In 2005, Miike was invited to direct an episode of the ''

Masters of Horror ''Masters of Horror'' is an anthology television series created by director Mick Garris for the Showtime cable network. Origin In 2002, director Mick Garris invited some director friends to an informal dinner at a restaurant in Sherman Oaks, C ...

'' anthology series. The series, featuring episodes by a range of established horror directors such as

John Carpenter John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, actor, and composer. Although he worked in various film genres, he is most commonly associated with horror, action, and science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s. He ...

Tobe Hooper Willard Tobe Hooper (; January 25, 1943 – August 26, 2017) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer best known for his work in the horror film, horror genre. The British Film Institute cited Hooper as one of the most influenti ...

and

Dario Argento Dario Argento (; born 7 September 1940) is an Italian film director, producer, screenwriter, actor and film critic, critic. His influential work in the horror film, horror genre during the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in the subgenre known as ...

, was supposed to provide directors with relative creative freedom and relaxed restrictions on violent and sexual content (some sexual content was edited from the Argento-directed episode " Jenifer"). However, when the

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

cable network acquired the rights to the series, Miike's episode, "

Imprint Imprint or imprinting may refer to: Entertainment * ''Imprint'' (TV series), Canadian television series * "Imprint" (''Masters of Horror''), episode of TV show ''Masters of Horror'' * ''Imprint'' (film), a 2007 independent drama/thriller film ...

", was deemed too disturbing for the network. Showtime cancelled it from the broadcast lineup even after extended negotiations, though it was retained as part of the series' DVD release.

Mick Garris Mick Garris (born December 4, 1951) is an American filmmaker and screenwriter born in Santa Monica, California. He is best known for his work in the horror film genre, as well as making Stephen King adaptations. Early life Garris was born in Sant ...

, creator and executive producer of the series, described the episode as "amazing, but hard even for me to watch... definitely the most disturbing film I've ever seen". While "Imprint" has yet to air in the United States, it has aired on

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels *Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 *Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing company ...

in the United Kingdom, on FX in Mexico, South and Central America, the Dominican Republic, France, Israel, Turkey, on

Nelonen Nelonen () is a Finnish commercial television channel. It started out as Helsinki's local television channel PTV in 1990 on the HTV cable network (now part of DNA Welho), and changed its name first to PTV4. On June 1, 1997, the channel expand ...

in Finland, and on

Rai Tre Rai 3 (formerly Rete 3) is an Italian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana. It was launched on 15 December 1979 and its programming is centred towards cultural and ...

in Italy.

Anchor Bay Entertainment Anchor Bay Entertainment (formerly Video Treasures and Starmaker Entertainment) was an American home entertainment and production company. It was a subsidiary of Starz Inc. Anchor Bay Entertainment marketed and sold feature films, television ser ...

, which has handled the DVD releases for the ''Masters of Horror'' series in the US, released "Imprint" uncut on Region 1 DVD on September 26, 2006.

Filmography

As director

As actor

*'' Young Thugs: Innocent Blood'' (1997), as man in red trousers getting beaten up by Riichi *''

'' (2001), as Shinozaki *'' Graveyard of Honor'' (2001), as Restaurant gunman *'' Ichi the Killer: Episode 0'' (2002), Kakihara (voice) *''

Last Life in the Universe ''Last Life in the Universe'' (Thai title: เรื่องรัก น้อยนิด มหาศาล, ''Ruang rak noi nid mahasan'') is a 2003 Thai romantic crime film directed by Pen-Ek Ratanaruang. The film is notable for being t ...

'' (2003), as Yakuza *''

Neighbour No. 13 is a horror film directed by Yasuo Inoue and written by Hajime Kado. It is based on Santa Inoue's manga of the same name, with Oguri Shun, Hirofumi Arai and Nakamura Shido in major roles. Plot Juzo Murasaki (Oguri Shun) arrives at a work cons ...

'' (2005), as Kaneda *''

Hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared b ...

'' (2006), as Miike Takashi *''

Dōbutsu no Mori is a social simulation game, social simulation video game series developed and published by Nintendo. The series was conceptualized and created by Katsuya Eguchi and Hisashi Nogami. In ''Animal Crossing'', the player character is a human who l ...

'' (2006), as Rokusuke/Pascal (voice) *''

Tenchijin is a 2009 Japanese super historical drama television series, and the 48th taiga drama of NHK. It aired every Sunday from January 4 to November 22, 2009, spanning 47 episodes.It is an unusual Taiga Drama as the final episode will be broadcast as ...

'' (2009), as Hyogo Kariyasu *'' No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle'' (2010), as himself, a friend of Bishop (voice) *''

No More Heroes III is a 2021 Action-adventure game, action-adventure video game developed and published by Grasshopper Manufacture for the Nintendo Switch. Marvelous (company), Marvelous published the game in Japan. It is the fourth installment in the No More Her ...

'' (2021), as himself (voice)

As producer

*'' The Making of 'Gemini''' (2000) *'' Ryu ga Gotoku'' (2006)

Other work

In 2005 Takashi Miike directed a

Kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought to ...

-style play titled '' Demon Pond''. The DVD recording of the performance was released by

Cinema Epoch Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking * ...

References

External links

*
Suicide is for the Birds: Takashi Miike's Tales of De-territorializing Flight at Fantasia 2003 and Beyond
* ttp://suicidegirls.com/interviews/Takashi+Miike+director+of+Gozu/ SuicideGirls interview with Miike by Daniel Robert Epstein*
Interview with Takashi Miike by Mark SchillingInterview with Takashi Miike
on

Midnight Eye Midnight Eye is a non-profit review website launched in 2001 by Tom Mes, Jasper Sharp, and Martin Mes. The website features reviews and analyses of Japanese films, as well as book reviews and interviews with filmmakers. In June 2015, it was announc ...

Interview with Miike regarding his Yakuza work on 1UP.com

Another Decade with Takashi Miike: An Introduction

PULP : : The Manga Magazine : : 6.01 What's No. 5?

PULP : : The Manga Magazine : : 5.07 Feature

PULP : : The Manga Magazine : : 5.07 Feature

PULP : : The Manga Magazine : : THE WOUNDED MAN INTERVIEW
{{DEFAULTSORT:Miike, Takashi 1960 births Living people Fantasy film directors Horror film directors Japanese film directors Japanese male film actors Japanese male actors of Korean descent People from Yao, Osaka Samurai film directors Yakuza film directors Film controversies in Japan