Ichi the Killer

2001 ‘殺し屋1’ Directed by Takashi Miike

Love really hurts

As sadomasochistic yakuza enforcer Kakihara searches for his missing boss he comes across Ichi, a repressed and psychotic killer who may be able to inflict levels of pain that Kakihara has only dreamed of.

Tadanobu Asano Nao Omori Shinya Tsukamoto Paulyn Sun Susumu Terajima Shun Sugata Toru Tezuka Yoshiki Arizono Kiyohiko Shibukawa Satoshi Niizuma Suzuki Matsuo Jun Kunimura SABU Morooka Moro Houka Kinoshita Yoshiyuki Morishita Yuki Kazamatsuri Rio Aoki Makoto Takeda Sakichi Satô Kaori Sugawara Hiroshi Kobayashi Mai Goto Manzô Shinra Masataka Haji Hideo Sako

Alternative Titles

Ichi - O Assassino, 杀手阿一, Koroshiya Ichi, Ichi the killer, Ichi The Killer, Koroshiya 1, 이치 더 킬러, Убийца Ичи

action crime horror

129 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by Ryan Francis ★★★★½ 2

My friend requested that we watch something "twisted". I simply put Ichi the Killer in and let her regret that particular request and letting me choose to begin with.
Review by Naughty aka Juli Norwood ★★★★★ 18

Please cue up the tune... Hurt So Good!
I found it amusing that the publicity machine for the film handed out barf bags at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Stockholm International Film Festival!
Even more amusing was the fact that it was subsequently banned in Norway after news of someone actually upchucking in said barf bag and another in the audience had fainted! Malaysia and Germany subsequently banned the film as well!
Obviously this isn't a film for mainstream audiences! You would think the minute someone started handing out barf bags that would have clued the "faint of heart" in on the type of film that was to be shown and perhaps they should pass on the film…
Review by DirkH ★★★★ 18

..........what the hell did I just watch?
And why exactly did I like it so much?
Sometimes I worry me............
Review by YI JIAN ★★★★★

Honestly, without exaggeration, the most depraved film of all time. I've been putting this off for six years and after testing the waters by venturing into Visitor Q (Sorry God), I've finally found the guts to watch it, turns out it's just as twisted, absurd and gory as I've expected it to be; I beg you, don't see me as some sort of delusional maniac for saying this, but I love it, really, every inch of it.
Ichi the Killer is a film that features everything under the sun that is frowned, spitted or vomited upon by a normal, healthy, functioning society-- that includes abuse, murder, torture, sadism, masochism, necrophilia, misogyny, rape, penis mutilation (though toned down a lot compared…
Review by Ava Davis ★★★½ 9

Ichi the Incel
Review by Steve G 🐝 ★★ 7

The World Is More Than Enough 3: You Haven't Seen That Yet?!
3/30 - Japan
It says here that Ichi The Killer is 129 minutes long. Not hours.
So how come it felt much longer? I am a fan of Takeshi Miike but from the films I've seen from him, generally it seems I'm in trouble when he decides to do something longer. The only exception to that would be Gozu, a film I regard as something of a minor modern masterpiece of violent delirium, sexual deviance and black comedy.
Where Gozu succeeds yet Ichi The Killer and, to a certain extent, Lesson Of The Evil fail is that despite the fact that it is not always advancing its main…

Recent reviews

Review by Amar ★★★★½

Saya dibuat terdiam beberapa saat setelah menonton film ini, perasaan absurd dan sakitnya seorang ichi dan kakihara yang tak pernah henti membunuh dan membantai orang membuat saya mual sesaat. namun, semua itu terbayarkan dengan betapa ciamiknya ending dari film ini, yang sangat sarat akan makna kehidupan.
Review by FilmParadox7 ★★

So my first introduction to Takashi Mike’s filmography was not so good lol. This film is a trip. Not in a very good way. From simply the look of the film, the crazy fast paced cinematography that goes all over the place at times, really strange characters, terrible fucking CGI (some of the worst I’ve seen) and many different characters to the point where it kind of starts to get a bit convoluted. Just a really odd and violent crime movie overall. And I don’t mind a lot of violence in films. I prefer it actually. But this is the first violent film I’ve seen that I thought displayed unnecessary vicious acts towards characters.
Hopefully the next Takashi Mike film i watch is a better experience.
Review by jimsfilms ★★½

There’s no love in your violence.
Review by ninjachameleon ★★★★

Kakihara is the kind of guy who would watch Cats on a daily basis. The movie, not the musical.
Review by david ★★★★

why is no one talking about the costume design.. its too good
Review by Matt the Great ★½

Is this a comedy? Cause I can’t tell.
I’m not easily disturbed but I do know when I watch something bad. This struck me as sloppy and just gross for no reason.

2/10
Review by Brandon Bzduch ★★★★★ 3

😳 I can’t stop watching it
Review by BartyBart ★★★½

Christ what a ride. This film is an unflinching, horrifying look at the psyche of an extreme sado-masochist and a mentally damaged, manipulated sadist. There's some really horrifying things in this film that make it hard to watch at points but that's what the movie is trying to be - horrifying. The problems I have for this film are few but I think they're pretty major as they brought me out of the movie.
First I have to say that for the most part the practical effects were fantastic however there were a few moments where the seams of the cosmetic are visible, which took me out of the film a little bit.
Then there's the CG effects, which are…
Review by dg_ ★★★★½

Grotesque and perverse