Gojoe concerns a feudal Japanese legend about a battle that took place at the Gojoe bridge near Kyoto in the 12th century. Sentries of the local clan keep getting their heads chopped off by a mysterious force, which the rank and file consider to be a vengeful, invisible demon of some sort. Benkei (Daisuke Ryu), a monk who was once an assassin and still retains his fantastic skills, teams up with Tetsukichi, a nihilistic corpse-robber, and the two attempt to solve the mystery.

It turns out that there is no supernatural beast responsible, but instead three highly-skilled swordsmen, led by a former clan prince named Shanao (Tadanobu Asano). Shanao has been in hiding for years, plotting revenge and honing his immense skills, and now the time has come to bring down the clan that murdered his family. Unfortunately for him, the monk Benkei proves at least up to the task of stopping him; and, thanks to a stolen sacred sword, might just stop his scheme in its tracks.

Gojoe is beautifully photographed, with a unique (and loud) soundtrack. The characters are kind of interesting, the story is fine; but… I just can’t seem to find it all that enjoyable. And I say this without being able to point to any single thing, or combination of things, that I don’t like about it. For whatever reason, it just doesn’t work for me. I don’t find the story all that compelling, nor do I care what happens to the characters. It’s all nice to look at, but I find my attention drifting away every few minutes.

There is really nothing wrong with the directing; Sogo Ishii is certainly competent and knows how to get all the good shots. Nor are the actors at fault. Daisuke Ryu as the monk stands out a bit, bringing a vigorous physicality to his role; he really does seem to be one of those warrior-monks of old, transplanted onto a Japanese film set. Tadanobu Asano is alright. I actually expected more from him – his performance here is almost sedate, but that’s not what I was wanting from him. Maybe I’m just used to him in ultra-cool, modern roles like Kakihara in Ichi the Killer or the young gang member in Sharkskin Man and Peach Hip Girl. His fighting skills are good enough, but he doesn’t seem to have his usual commanding presence.

Gojoe apparently exists in two versions: a truncated 97-minute version (more common outside Japan), and the original, stately 137 minutes. I have the longer one, which is supposed to contain more back story and character development; but I don’t mind saying I think I would have been happier with a shorter, tighter, more action-packed cut.

But this film got good reviews all around, and I am definitely in the minority. If you find a disc at a good price, pick it up. You will almost certainly like it better than I did.