Ryuhei Kitamura

Ryuhei Kitamura (北村 龍平, Kitamura Ryūhei) (born May 30, 1969) is a Japanese filmmaker.

Ryuhei Kitamura
Born (1969-05-30) May 30, 1969
Osaka, Japan
OccupationFilmmaker

Biography

Early life

Kitamura was born in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. He dropped out of high school at age 17 and relocated to Sydney, Australia, where he attended a school for visual arts.[1] His first film as director was the short Exit, which he made as his graduation piece at age 19.

Career

After graduating, he returned to Japan to establish Napalm Films, his independent production studio. His first feature-length films Heat After Dark and Down to Hell were successful in film festivals, and he soon found his first mainstream success with the cult film Versus.[2] The film launched the career of stars Tak Sakaguchi and Hideo Sakaki, and brought Kitamura international recognition when it was released on DVD outside Japan in 2004.[1]

In 2002, Kitamura directed the short film The Messenger: Requiem for the Dead as part of the Jam Films project, as well as Alive. In 2003, he directed a feature film adaptation of the manga Azumi, and Sky High, a prequel to the popular Japanese television drama.[3] He collaborated with director Yukihiko Tsutsumi in the Duel Project, in which the two challenged one another to produce the best dueling movie with minimal production time and budget, with Aragami being Kitamura's contribution. Also in 2003, Kitamura served as producer for the film Battlefield Baseball, the directorial debut of Versus co-writer Yūdai Yamaguchi. Kitamura directed 2004's Godzilla: Final Wars,[1] the 28th installment in the renowned kaiju franchise. The film was the first of Kitamura's projects to hold its premiere in Hollywood.[4] In 2006, Kitmura directed LoveDeath, before relocating to Los Angeles, California.[5]

In 2003, he directed the in-game cutscenes for Metal Gear Solid: Twin Snakes, a remake of the iconic Metal Gear Solid for the Nintendo Gamecube. Unlike previous titles in the series, The Twin Snakes was developed by Silicon Knights and produced by Konami. The game featured similar mechanics to Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty due to having been made on the same engine. Kitamura's direction of the cutscenes was viewed as controversial, criticism leveled at its Matrix-like action tone and unrealistic stunts performed by the characters. Regardless, it went on to receive positive reviews from video game review sites.[6]

In 2008, Kitamura made his American filmmaking debut with Midnight Meat Train based on Clive Barker's short horror story of the same name.[7] The film (starring Bradley Cooper, Vinnie Jones, and Brooke Shields) was distributed by Lionsgate, and released directly to the secondary market on August 1, 2008.[8][9] Despite receiving positive reviews from critics,[10] the film was a box office failure. Kitamura's next directorial venture did not come until 2012 with No One Lives, starring Luke Evans and Adelaide Clemens. It was shown as part of the Midnight Madness portion of the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival,[11] and received a limited theatrical release on May 10, 2013.

While promoting No One Lives, Kitamura announced that he was working on his "comeback" film in Japan, stating in an interview, "It’s a completely different role than what I’ve done before. It’s also not a bloody movie, not a horror movie. It’s a big action movie."[12] In November, 2013, the project was revealed to be Lupin III, a modern adaptation of the iconic manga by Monkey Punch.[13] The film was released in Japan on August 30, 2014.

Kitamura's 2017 thriller film, Downrange, was announced to premiere at Toronto International Film Festival in September 2017. The film follows a group of people on a road trip who are trapped on a country road by a sniper.[14] In 2018, Kitamura directed a segment in the anthology horror film Nightmare Cinema.[15]

Future projects

Kitamura is set to direct the slasher film Black Friday 3D, based on a screenplay by Joe Knetter.[16] He is also attached to direct Marble City, a revenge film written by Tom Sjolund,[17] as well as Gun Monkeys, from a screenplay by Lee Goldberg based on the novel by Victor Gischler. In May 2013, Kitamura confirmed that he has written the script for Versus 2, and that Tak Sakaguchi would likely reprise his role from the original film.[18] In September 2015, it was announced that Kitamura will direct the supernatural thriller Vessels for Ubiquity Studios, set to be filmed in early 2016.[19]

Personal life

Kitamura speaks English fluently. His favorite Godzilla film is Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974), and his favourite kaiju is King Caesar. He has expressed admiration for fellow Japanese director Shunji Iwai, asserting that the film Swallowtail Butterfly is "the best Japanese movie ever made."[7] He has stated that his "dream project" would be to direct an installment in the Mad Max film franchise.[7]

Filmography

Films
Year Title Director Writer Producer Notes
1996 Heat After Dark Yes Yes Short film
1997 Down to Hell Yes Yes Yes Short film
Role: Ponytail Thug
2000 Versus Yes Yes Feature film debut
2002 Alive Yes Yes
The Messenger[lower-alpha 1] Yes Yes Short film
2003 Aragami Yes Yes
Azumi Yes
Battlefield Baseball Yes
Sky High Yes
2004 Sakurajima Yes Video documentary
Longinus Yes Yes Short film
Godzilla: Final Wars Yes Role: Radio DJ
2006 LoveDeath Yes Yes Yes
Romance Novel Yes TV film
Co-directed with Etsushi Toyokawa
2008 The Midnight Meat Train Yes Hollywood debut
Yoroi Samurai Zombie Yes
2009 Baton Yes
2013 No One Lives Yes
2014 Lupin the 3rd Yes
2017 Downrange Yes
2018 Nightmare Cinema Yes Mashit segment
TBA Doorman Yes Completed

Video games
Year Title Director Writer Producer Notes
2004 Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes Yes in-game cutscenes

Notes
  1. Also known as Requiem for the Dead.
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References
  1. "Ryuhei Kitamura Interview". Madman Entertainment.
  2. "Death Scenes We Love: Ryuhei Kitamura's Versus". Moviephone.
  3. Gifford, Kevin. "Azumi". Newtype USA. 5 (11) p. 154. November 2006. ISSN 1541-4817.
  4. (in Japanese) Ryuhei Kitamura at JMDb
  5. "Ryuhei Kitamura's LoveDeath Review". TwitchFilm. Archived from the original on 2014-01-08.
  6. "Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes Metacritic Score". Metacritic. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  7. "APA Interview with Baton director Ryuhei Kitamura". Asia Pacific Arts.
  8. "Midnight Meat Train Photos". Clive Barker Revelations.
  9. "Ryuhei Kitamura to Direct Black Friday 3D?". DreadCentral.
  10. "Rotten Tomatoes: The Midnight Meat Train".
  11. "Ryuhei Kitamura's "No One Lives" Scores Teaser Artwork". ArrowInTheHead.
  12. "No One Lives Ryuhei Kitamura Exclusive Interview". The Diva Review.
  13. "Ryuhei Kitamura Directing New Live-Action Lupin III Movie, Cast Revealed". Bleeding Cool.
  14. "TIFF 2017: Midnight Madness Lineup Brings Horror in All Forms to Toronto - Dread Central". www.dreadcentral.com.
  15. Alexander, Chris (November 2, 2015). "Mick Garris Announces Full Director Lineup For New Anthology Film NIGHTMARE CINEMA". Shock Till You Drop. Retrieved November 3, 2015.
  16. "Ryuhei Kitamura Takes on Slasher Genre With 'Black Friday 3D'". BloodyDisgusting.
  17. "Nicolas Cage and Mickey Rourke in Talks for Marble City". ComingSoon.
  18. "Kitamura Ryuhei Talks NO ONE LIVES, VERSUS 2 And Sakaguchi's 'Bullshit' Retirement". TwitchFilm.
  19. McNary, Dave (September 30, 2015). "Queen Mary Thriller 'Vessels' Attracts Ryuhei Kitamura as Director". Variety. Retrieved November 3, 2015.
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