If you like a detective thriller kind of story with lots of action, you could do a lot worse than this. It's fun, has a lot of good stunts and it's an easy watch. There might not be the biggest acting challenge going on and the characters may seem easily drawn too, but that shouldn't be an obstacle in enjoying this.
It might be a bit too long for some people though and I am not that familiar with the general story of "Lupin" (this is not the first movie made about this character),so I can't tell you how this is compared to other sources/movies. I do know that I did enjoy myself and was entertained enough to give this at least one thumb up
Keywords: thiefart thiefdetective inspector
Plot summary
The Crimson Heart of Cleopatra: a gift from Julius Caesar to the Queen of the Nile, it is a necklace of unrivaled beauty and inestimable value, with a ruby as its centerpiece. Once thought lost forever, it reappears centuries later in two parts possessed by two rival moguls: Pramuk (Nirut Sirichanya),chairman of Navarone Security and a kingpin within the underworld of Southeast Asia, has the ruby; Thomas Dawson (Nick Tate),an aging British tycoon and former partner of the legendary gentleman thief Arsène Lupin, has the necklace. Both have set their eyes on reuniting the Crimson Heart's two parts, which is said to symbolize Caesar and Cleopatra's reunion in the afterlife. Meanwhile, Inspector Koichi Zenigata (Tadanobu Asano) of Interpol hopes to make the bust of his life at the Dawson estate, where the world's top thieves have assembled to appoint a new leader to Dawson's thieves guild, The Works. Among them is Lupin the 3rd (Shun Oguri),grandson of Arsène Lupin and Dawson's protege, and Lupin's long-time rival Michael Lee (Jerry Yan). When Pramuk manipulates Michael into assassinating Dawson and capturing the necklace, Lupin vows to avenge his death and steal back the Crimson Heart by assembling his own elite team of thieves: sexy and cunning Fujiko Mine (Meisa Kuroki),cynical trigger-man Daisuke Jigen (Tetsuji Tamayama),stoic swordsman Goemon Ishikawa XIII (Gô Ayano) and tech wiz Pierre (Kim Joon). They descend upon The Ark, Pramuk's remote, heavily-armed island fortress, which is protected by an impregnable, state-of-the-art security system. Nevertheless, Lupin and his gang won't stop until they pry redemption - and the world's most coveted prize - from Pramuk's hands. But where does this leave Michael? Is he truly as ruthless as that fateful night has led Lupin and his friends to believe... or is there more to his story than meets the eye?
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
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Master thief?
Fujiko acted by Meisa Kuroki was the highlight of this movie!
I am a big fan of Lupin the 3rd series. Although it made many fans angry, I didn't feel it was not so bad that I got angery. Frankly speaking, I thought it didn't have to be made closer to the original forcibly. If you suppose it's another thing, it's ok enough to watch it withought getting bored.
Did not steal my heart
Kitamura, the guy who did "Versus" and "Aragami" tires his skill at some material that has been around for a while. To be precise for almost a 100 years (counting in the original Arsene Lupin).
Let me pick up one thing that was mentioned before, the lighting. In general it was okay for me, but that's a matter of personal taste, I guess.
I haven't had a chance to review the mangas and the anime(s),so I am a bit biased. The entire story is somewhat confusing. Thieves stealing from thieves, okay, I can live with that. But the entire sister/brother thing between 'Michael' and 'Fujiko' is a bit too much. Same goes for the strangely misplaced loyalty to his (Michael's) father as well as the weird thirst for revenge stemming from it. Also, the entire "auction" scene makes no sense at all. What kind of auction is this supposed to be? And so forth. The entire story suffers from potholes, inconsistencies and sudden turns that border on the absurd; Parmuk was the bad guy all along? Shocking development! *gasp* The last part, when they break into the "Ark" is way over the top. Which does not help the move, since it's just for show. In terms of story it's somewhat useless. I thought he was a thief, not Rambo incarnate? And you'd need a 170 mil. computer to write a virus that is being carelessly!!! plugged in via USB? Come on, guys.
Apart from that the acting is decent, the characters try to make sense in the confines of the plot but sometimes fall a bit short. Action scenes and stunts are en par with other action/adventure movies. If you just watch it for fun and seek light entertainment, it's okay. I kinda hope this stays a one-off for Kitamura and he will turn to pure action again. As a matter of fact, I've got "No one lives" lined up. Let's hope it's a better treat.