Streaming And Screaming: ‘The Last Ronin’
by Tito W. James
Summary
An effortlessly badass and visually gorgeous take on post-apocalyptic Russia.
Overall
9/10
The Last Ronin feels tailor-made: terse dialogue, avant garde fashion, and intuitive world-building. Each fight scene is slickly choreographed and hits the bullseye between clarity and stylization. Max Shishkin‘s directing is on point with camera angles and compositions that feel pulled from classical paintings and expressionistic photography.
Nuclear war and climate change have rendered the world a wasteland. In a landscape where survival is not guaranteed and bullets are the only currency, Ronin (Yuri Kolokolnikov) seeks revenge for his father’s murder. A young girl requests his help to return to her birthplace, a dangerous journey which will require all his fighting skills to survive.
Genre film connoisseurs will recognize echos of Mad Max and Lone Wolf and Cub within the film’s plot and setting. The Last Ronin manages to carve out a unique space within the post-apocalyptic subgenre because of its unique visual presentation. The film uses the genre conventions of samurai films and spaghetti westerns. By the third act, it even looks like a Rammstein music video. The eclectic mix of influences is held together by the glue of a timeless synth-wave soundtrack.
Distributor Well Go USA is known for genre classics like Train to Busan and Ip Man. The Last Ronin will no doubt become another cinematic touchstone within aesthetic genre films. If Shishkin wishes to explore his post-apocalyptic world further, I’d gladly follow the Ronin wherever he wanders.
The Last Ronin is available to rent on Demand.
