Sho Aikawa was once the tough-guy muse of Takashi Miike, appearing in films such as "Gokudo Kuroshakai" ("Rainy Dog"), "Dead or Alive: Hanzaisha" ("Dead or Alive") and "Gokudo Kyofu Dai-gekijo: Gozu" ("Gozu") that made the director the international "King of Cult." The sandpapery voice, the sideways stare and the sudden, stylish eruptions into action added up to the essence of cool.
Now 53 and an industry icon, Aikawa is commemorating his nearly three decades on screen with "Deadman Inferno" ("Z Island") comedian/director Hiroshi Shinagawa's attempt to recapture the wild and crazy energy of his star's now long-ago peak. What it does, however, is confirm how far Miike's best early efforts were above the trite, done-to-death genre norm — and how the indefatigable Aikawa, who in his prime was knocking out routine actioners by the dozens, as well as Miike's straight-to-video classics, can make even the dross interesting to watch, as long as the camera is on him.
"Deadman Inferno" begins with the sort of slo-mo shoot-'em-up scene — with shell casings bouncing beautifully on the pavement — that was once semi-obligatory for Asian action pics that aspired to style, but which now looks like a thudding cliche. The intended victim is gang boss Hiroya Munakata (Aikawa), with the shooters in hoodies being from a Kansai gang, the Takeshita-gumi, Munakata and his men are warring with. A loyal Munakata soldier, Takashi (Shingo Tsurumi), takes a bullet for the boss and survives, but spends the next 10 years in prison.