Movie Review - A Colt Is My Passport

A Colt is my Passport

'A Colt is my Passport' along with 'Gangster VIP' and 'Velvet Hustler' are part of the Nikkatsu akushon (action) series at Fantasia. Nikkatsu was a prominent Japanese studio who reached their prime in the 1950s and 60s with action films that borrowed from film noir and spaghetti westerns. Coming out of the second world war when Western movies were banned, the inclusion of such techniques was brand new for the Japanese viewing audience and was quickly consumed en masse. Now I certainly don't claim to be an expert on the topic, or even familiar with the genre, my knowledge of this small pocket of film history comes from conversations I had with Mark Schilling, the programmer of this section of the festival and author of 'No Limits No Borders: Nikkatsu Action Cinema' who is currently touring these three films and several more across North America. Heads up Vancouver! He's coming your way!

After finding out about this movie, and its influence on Japanese (and even American cinema) I figured it'd be worth checking it out. So far, all I knew of this genre was the popular 'Branded to Kill' so I figured I'd supplement my knowledge a bit by watching 'A Colt is my Passport.' Moreover, this film, as well as several others being toured, are not yet translated in English (and may never be released in North America) so they are being screened concurrently with a powerpoint presentation with Schilling tabbing forward every subtitle. Now that's dedication.


Anyway, to the review. In brief, Jo Shishido plays a hitman contracted to kill a rival gang's leader. He does so but his exit out of the country is complicated by the rival gang's intervention. He and his brother (sidekick?) hide out in a cheap hotel as they try to find a way out of the country. Like 'Branded to Kill' the film is full of hard boiled gangsters out to catch the protagonist who proves to be even more stern and level-headed than all his rival combined, and like 'Branded' it culminates in a serious showdown that drips with style, edge, and cool.

'Colt' though, progresses in a much more linear fashion than its more famous counterpart, in such a way that you see everything coming from miles away. I admittedly fell asleep for 5-10 minutes during the show (sue me, I'm working hard at the fest) and knew exactly what had happened in my time away. Granted, understood in the context of when the film came out 'Colt' was a breath of fresh air to those who had never seen this type of action before. Moreover, modern filmmakers could learn a thing or two from the tension build up to the final gunfight, and its good cinematography and a damn smart fight scene (not CGI explosions) that get the audience riled up and excited for the final showdown.

Finally, it is impossible (impossible!) to watch this movie without appreciating the music. The influence of cowboy Westerns are overt and the soundtrack could very well have been written by Ennio Morricone, and I say this as glowing praise, not as an accusation to plagiarism. Indeed in some scenes you can't help but notice the homage paid as Shishido squares off against his foes with the wind slowly blowing the sand across the plains. For fans of Japanese cinema this is a history lesson, and in fact Schiller told me that even Quentin Tarrintino hadn't heard of the film up until recently and was very excited to see it. For others (and I probably fall more into this category) its something we know we should pay homage to, but isn't as gripping as we might like. However, like 'Branded' the final action sequence is payoff alone to see this film.