Dubbed as one of Takashi Miike’s best pic in years, Magnet Releasing have made the type of pick-up that demonstrates that it’s perhaps the healthiest genre label in the U.S. market (theatrical, fantasy festivals, VOD) on the fantasy genre type film front. Magnet is setting the Venice and TIFF preemed Miike’s 13 Assassins for a first quarter of 2011 release and are placing it as the Closing Night film at this year’s Fantastic Fest in Austin.
Set in 1844 Japan, and based on a 1963 film of the same name, 13 ASSASSINS stars Koji Yakusho (Tokyo Sonata and Babel), and brings together the cream of Japan’s acting talent. Yakusho plays a brave samurai who assembles an elite team of thirteen killers to assassinate the brother of the Shogun, a sadistic and well protected young lord who’s above the law, raping and killing innocents with impunity.
