politic1983 SABU's debut feature 'Dangan Ranna', or 'Non-Stop' depending on your preference, is a bit of a mixed bag. A film about running, this is both slow and fast, violent yet humorous, some parts good, some parts bad. Ironman Tomorowo Taguchi plays Yasuda, an inept man in work, romance and society in general. Annoyed at the world, he gets himself a gun and plans to rob a bank. And this is where the small stabs of humour arise. Forgetting to get himself a mask to cover his face for the job, he jumps into a convenience store to get one. But with thievery on his mind, he decides to try and steal one, and the alert clerk picks up on the would-be thief. A stand-off ensues, with Yasuda firing his weapon and escaping the resulting melee. Yasuda then runs, pursued by the clerk, whom is then introduced to us as failed musician and drug addict, Aizawa in the form of flashbacks. Troubled by a yakuza hassling him for money and high on smack, he runs after Yasuda. Neither looking to stop anytime soon, we follow their running through the streets, passing Aizawa's yakuza agitator, Takeda. Also troubled by the recent murders of his boss and 'aniki', Takeda follows the chase in pursuit of Aizawa. What then follows is three men running, with seemingly no stopping likely. SABU chooses to break up the running with flashbacks of the trio's lives, showing this is not a film about what the three are running after, but running from. All are troubled, and the endless running is their escape from their daily lives, acting as therapy as they mull over their problems. Seriousness though is mixed with humour, with the three all having sexual fantasies about a random woman they run passed, a free promotion acting as a marathon-style drinks break and running over Tokyo's Rainbow Bridge, only to run back over it in the opposite direction. As the film develops, however, more characters are brought in. A yakuza war develops as a subplot and a group of four bored policeman exchange dialogue about their favourite guns. It's the introduction of a wider story where the film gets a little lost and confused in trying to build toward the conclusion. And that's maybe the film's problem: While a nice set-up with the reasoning for the three men running from life, how to bring it to an end is difficult, with the film's alternate title 'Non-Stop' maybe wishful thinking for SABU. This could have been kept as a short, ending with the characters simply running and running. But obviously as this is a feature, some sort of conclusion is required. This may be where some naivety for a debut director comes in, but the film's end is not a total disaster. A strong idea, with a good balance of humour thrown in where necessary, this is filmmaking for the fun of it. Released two years before Germany's 'Run Lola Run' - a film also short and undecided on its conclusion - it shows SABU is a filmmaker with lots of interesting and playful ideas to work with, though as a then novice, maybe this idea just ran out of a little steam. politic1983.blogspot.co.uk

InzyWimzy This director makes films which never cease to amuse, entertain, or make me think long after first viewing. Dangan Runner (Non-Stop) is where it all started.The story is simple. Sabu's characters are interesting in the fact that they are far from perfect and deal with everyday problems which lead to events of grand proportion. Tomorowo Taguchi (Yasuda) is great as our main character (I wouldn't go so far as to call him a hero which is great in this case) who totally puts a spin on the term packing heat (I never caught this till watching this a 2nd time; an ode to Sabu's subtle humor). Rather than relying on long dialogue, the story is a blast to watch as they reveal the characters' situations and how they get caught up in this dilemma. Diamond Yukai is good as the rocking, hazed out Aizawa. The music plays a great role in Dangan Runner as it establishes moods at a breakneck pace. Shin'ichi Tsutsumi makes his Sabu debut and it's apparent why the director chose to work with him in later films. Tsutsumi has this screen presence where he successfully conveys what his character is going through without saying much dialogue. Plus, the image of him sprinting with a blade in hand carries quite an impact. Right from the get go, you can tell Takeda means business even if he's going through yakuza troubles of his own. Ren Osugi is great in his brief, yet vital role as he gives Takeda some helpful insight. Look for Sabu himself (it's very tough not to miss him!). Oh, the actress who plays Midori is a dead ringer for Maggie Cheung, isn't she??The cinematography in Dangan Runner is fantastic. There are really great shots of modern city life ranging from busy streets, narrow alleyways, construction zones, and pachinko parlors. One awesome shot is on the bridge just right after sunset resulting literally in a purple hazed sky. I noticed one theme in the film is looking into one's self and reaching that point of self realization, coming to realize where you are now, how you got there, and deciding what to do next. The characters here are furiously looking for the answer for each of them and it's through the journey that they find it. Being an avid runner, I can relate with the benefits of running, how it helps with forgetting everyday problems, reflecting on what's on your mind, and at the end, I come out with a great clear headed feeling. Like I mentioned, Sabu makes very thought provoking films.

brewsterschmidt A lot has already been said on this movie and I' d like to join those who praised it. It's a highly unique film which uses elements of different genres: drama, comedy, gangster film without making a mess of it. At points you just laugh out loud, at other points you feel for the characters whose mistakes and failures you watch. Sabu's genius can be shown with regard to some sequences of the movie. One is that where all three men chasing one another have an erotic day dream about a young woman that they just passed by on the street. This sequence is beautifully done and illustrates the characters of all three runners very well. It is erotic and funny at the same time. Another example of Sabu's genius is the part of the film where the runners get tired. First one of them, the typical loser among the three guys, hallucinates that the woman that left him for someone else is back again and you see them dancing with one another and in the next shot him dancing with himself which is deeply moving. All of the runners get to this point where they think that have something back they lost or are on track again. And at one part of the movie they stop chasing each other, running in line, just laughing.So here is it all the beauty and the ludicrousness of what we call life which Sabu manages to show throughout the film. His characters fail (do they at the end?) but he doesn't rob them of their dignity. "Monday" and "Postman Blues" that do justice to Sabu's claim that he is a genius. Go watch them!

deproduction An entertaining and substantive film, Non-Stop has drawn deserving comparisons with "Run Lola Run". The film quickly develops into a chase sequence, during which the viewers learn about the three main characters through flashbacks and daydream sequences. The chase serves not as as a fast-paced climax, but as a journey that makes up the majority of the film. During the "run" we see the characters grow and momentarily forget about their dreary lives, about the "macho" roles they've bought into, and eventually forgetting about why they started running in the first place. Much like fighting provided a "clarity" for the characters in "Fight Club," running provides this film's characters with a means to step away from the false values that we all allow society to create for us. Their running serves as way to truly taste life from an unclouded perspective, and all three find some level of clarity and joy in the process.My appreciation and enjoyment only wavered slightly in the ending of the film, where instead of learning from their experience, the characters seem to revert to acting out those false macho roles I thought they had escaped from through their journey.Still, the only true problem with this film is that it wasn't distributed outside Japan sooner.