is a Japanese filmmaker and actor. He has directed over 100 films and television productions, in a variety of genres such as action, children's films, comedy, drama, horror, musicals, and jidaigeki period dramas.
He is best known for the horror films Audition (1999), Ichi the Killer (2001), Visitor Q (2001), Gozu (2003), and One Missed Call (2003). He is also known for samurai and yakuza films such as Dead or Alive (1999), Graveyard of Honor (2002), 13 Assassins (2010), earning a Japan Academy Film Prize nomination for Director of the Year), and Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai (2011). He has also acted in more than 20 films.
Miike spent much of his career as a controversial figure who had several of his films criticized for their extreme graphic violence and other transgressive content, especially Ichi the Killer, which was banned in several countries. However, in his later career, he shifted towards work more acceptable to the mainstream; his films Hara-Kiri and Straw Shield (2013) were both nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, while both Sukiyaki Western Django (2007) and 13 Assassins were nominated for the Venice Film Festival's Golden Lion. Several of his films have developed cult followings.
Early life
Miike was born in Yao, Osaka, on August 24, 1960. His mother was a seamstress and his father was a welder. His father was born in Seoul, which was then part of Japanese Korea, as his paternal grandfather was stationed in Korea and China during World War II. He was interested in motorcycles during his childhood, and considered racing professionally. At the age of 18, he joined the Yokohama Vocational School of Broadcast and Film (now the Japan Institute of the Moving Image), where he came under the guidance of the school's founder Shohei Imamura.
Career
Miike's first films were television productions, but he also began directing several direct-to-video V-Cinema releases. He still intermittently directs these due to the creative freedom afforded by the less stringent censorship of the medium and the riskier content that producers will allow.
Miike's theatrical debut was the film The Third Gangster (Daisan no gokudō), but Shinjuku Triad Society (1995) was his first theatrical release to gain public attention. The film showcased his extreme style and his recurring themes, and its success allowed him to work on higher-budgeted pictures. Shinjuku Triad Society was the first film in what is labeled his "Black Society Trilogy", which also includes Rainy Dog (1997) and Ley Lines (1999).
Miike gained international fame in the early 2000s when his horror film Audition (1999), his violent yakuza epic Dead or Alive (1999), and his controversial 2001 adaptation of the manga Ichi the Killer all played at international film festivals. He gained a strong cult following in the West that grew with the increase in DVD releases of his works. During the international premiere of Ichi the Killer at the 2001 Toronto International Film Festival, the audience received "barf bags" emblazoned with the film's logo as a promotional gimmick. The BBFC refused to allow the release of the film uncut in the United Kingdom, citing its extreme levels of sexual violence towards women, and it required just over three minutes of footage to be removed before its release. In Hong Kong, 17 minutes of footage were cut. The film was outright banned in Germany, Malaysia, and Norway.
In 2005, Miike was invited to direct an episode of the anthology series Masters of Horror, intended to provide horror directors with creative freedom and relaxed restrictions on violent and sexual content. However, when Showtime acquired the rights to the series, Miike's episode "Imprint" was deemed too disturbing for broadcast. Showtime cancelled it from the broadcast lineup even after extended negotiations, though it was retained as part of the series' DVD release. Mick Garris, creator and executive producer of the series, described the episode as "amazing [but] hard to watch" and "definitely the most disturbing" production he had ever seen. "Imprint" has yet to air in the United States but was shown on Bravo in the United Kingdom, Nelonen in Finland, Rai Tre in Italy, and FX in multiple other countries. Anchor Bay Entertainment, which handled the American DVD releases for Masters of Horror, released the episode uncut on September 26, 2006.
thumb|right|200px|Miike in 2011
In his later career, Miike has shifted towards work more acceptable to the mainstream; his samurai film Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai (2011) premiered in competition at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival and his spy thriller film Straw Shield (2013) was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.
Stage directing
In 2005, Miike directed a Kabuki-style play titled Demon Pond. The DVD recording of the performance was released by Cinema Epoch.
Miike directed the play Zatoichi based on the eponymous character. The stage production was performed and filmed on December 12, 2007, and the DVD was released on May 30, 2008.
Artistry
Style
Miike achieved notoriety for depicting shocking scenes of extreme violence and sexual perversions. Many of his films contain graphic and lurid bloodshed, portrayed in an over-the-top and cartoonish manner. Much of his work depicts the activities of criminals, especially yakuza, or concern themselves with gaijin (foreigners living in Japan). He is known for his films' dark comedy and for pushing the boundaries of censorship.
Miike has directed films in a range of genres. He has created lighthearted children's films (Ninja Kids!!!, The Great Yokai War), period pieces (Sabu), a road movie (The Bird People in China), a teen drama (Andromedia), a farcical musical comedy horror (The Happiness of the Katakuris), video game adaptations (Like a Dragon, Ace Attorney), manga adaptations (Blade of the Immortal, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable, Terra Formers, The Mole Song Trilogy) and character driven crime dramas (Ley Lines, Agitator).
While Miike often creates films that are less accessible and target arthouse audiences and fans of extreme cinema, such as Izo and the "Box" segment in Three... Extremes, he has created several mainstream and commercial titles such as the horror film One Missed Call and the fantasy drama The Great Yokai War.
Reflecting his unusual approach to filmmaking, Miike has said of his career:
Influences
Miike cited the American science-fiction action film Starship Troopers (1997) as his favorite film. He has expressed admiration for fellow Japanese filmmakers Akira Kurosawa and Hideo Gosha. He named American filmmaker David Lynch as his favorite director from the English-speaking world, and cited Dutch filmmaker Paul Verhoeven (who directed Starship Troopers) as the director who fascinates him the most.
|-
| 2006
| Masters of Horror
|
|
| Episode "Imprint"
|-
| 2008
| K-tai Investigator 7
|ケータイ捜査官7
|Kētai Sōsakan Sebun
| 3 episodes (Also supervising producer)
|-
| 2011
| QP (TV series)
|QP
|
| Directed 5 out of 12 episodes
|-
| 2017
| Idol × Warrior Miracle Tunes!
|アイドル×戦士 ミラクルちゅーんず!
|Aidoru × senshi Mirakuru Chūnzu!
|rowspan=6|General director
|-
| 2018
| Magical × Heroine Magimajo Pures!
|魔法×戦士 マジマジョピュアーズ!
|Maho × senshi Majimajo Pyuazu!
|-
| 2019
| Secret × Heroine Phantomirage!
|ひみつ×戦士 ファントミラージュ!
|Himitsu × senshi Fantomirāju!
|-
| 2020
| Police × Heroine Lovepatrina!
|ポリス×戦士 ラブパトリーナ!
|Porisu × senshi Rabupatorīna!
|-
| 2021
| Bittomo × Heroine Kirameki Powers!
|ビッ友×戦士 キラメキパワーズ!
|Bittomo × senshi Kirameki Pawāzu!
|-
| rowspan="2" | 2022
| RizSta -Top of Artists!-
|リズスタ -Top of Artists!-
|Rizusuta -Top of Artists!-
|-
| Connect
|커넥트
|Keonekteu
| OTT Drama
|-
| 2023
| Assistant Inspector: Daimajin
|警部補ダイマジン
|
| Directed 6 out of 8 episodes
|-
| 2025
| Masked Ninja Akakage
|仮面の忍者 赤影
|
| Directed 4 out of 10 episodes
|-
| 2026
| Major Eruption of Mount Fuji: The Coming "Gray Nightmare"
|富士山大噴火 迫る"灰色の悪夢"
| Fujisan dai funka: semaru "hairo no akumu"
|2-part miniseries, directed the drama segments
|}
TV movies
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Original title
! Romanization
! Notes
|-
|1992
| Last Run: 100 Million Yen's Worth of Love & Betrayal / The Rampaging Ferrari 250 GTO
| ラスト・ラン～愛と裏切りの百億円／疾走フェラーリ２５０ＧＴＯ
| Rasuto ran: Ai to uragiri no hyaku-oku en - shissō Feraari 250 GTO
|
|-
|rowspan=2|2002
| Sabu
| SABU 〜さぶ〜
| Sabu
|
|-
| Part-Time Detective
| パートタイム探偵
| Paato-taimu tantei
|
|-
| 2003
|Negotiator
|交渉人
|Kōshōnin
|
|-
|2004
| Part-Time Detective 2
| パートタイム探偵2
| Paato-taimu tantei 2
|
|-
| 2025
| Shin Abarenbō Shōgun
|新・暴れん坊将軍
| Shin abarenbō shōgun
|
|}
Anime series
- Onimusha (2023) (chief director)
- Nyaight of the Living Cat (2025) (chief director)
Music videos
- Pandōra (2002)
Commercials
- 地球兄弟 (Chikyu kyodai) (Blue Planet Brothers) (2013), ten 6-minute commercials for Japan Tobacco
- Midnight (2024), short online film for iPhone 15 Pro
Acting roles
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
| 1997
| Young Thugs: Innocent Blood
| Man in red trousers getting beaten up by Riichi
|
|-
| 2001
| Agitator
| Shinozaki
|
|-
|rowspan=2|2002
| Graveyard of Honor
| Restaurant gunman
|
|-
| Ichi the Killer: Episode 0
| Kakihara
| Voice
|-
| 2003
| Last Life in the Universe
| Yakuza
|
|-
|rowspan=2|2005
| The Neighbor No. Thirteen
| Kaneda
|
|-
| Hostel
| Miike Takashi
|
|-
|2006
| Gekijōban Dōbutsu no Mori
| Rokusuke/Pascal
| Voice
|-
| 2009
| Tenchijin
| Hyogo Kariyasu
|
|-
| 2010
| No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle
| rowspan=2|Himself
| rowspan=2|Voice
|-
| 2021
| No More Heroes III
|-
|rowspan=2|2024
| Midnight
| Kaede's father
|
|-
| Chain Reactions
| Himself
| Documentary film
|}
References
Bibliography
- Mes, Tom. Agitator: The Cinema of Takashi Miike. Godalming: FAB Press, 2003.
- Williams, Tony. "Takashi Miike's Cinema of Outrage." cineACTION 64 (2004): 54–62
- "Izo: Takashi Miike's History Lesson." Asian Cinema 16.2 (2005): 85–109.
- Gerow, Aaron. "The Homelessness of Style and the Problems of Studying Miike Takashi." Canadian Journal of Film Studies 18.1 (2009): 24–43
External links
- Suicide is for the Birds: Takashi Miike's Tales of De-territorializing Flight at Fantasia 2003 and Beyond
- 2002 Interview at the Brussels International Festival of Fantastic Film
- SuicideGirls interview with Miike by Daniel Robert Epstein
- Interview with Takashi Miike by Mark Schilling
- Interview with Takashi Miike on Midnight Eye
- Interview with Miike regarding his Yakuza work on 1UP.com
- Another Decade with Takashi Miike: An Introduction
- PULP : : The Manga Magazine : : 6.01 What's No. 5?
- PULP : : The Manga Magazine : : 5.07 Feature
- PULP : : The Manga Magazine : : 5.07 Feature
- PULP : : The Manga Magazine : : THE WOUNDED MAN INTERVIEW