Tornado (2025)

Rating: ***
Review Date: 5/31/25
Cast: Koki (Mitsuki Kimura), Tim Roth, Jack Lowden, Takehiro Hira, cameo by Joanne Whalley

"For those who wish to survive in battle, there is only death."

A lean and utterly joyless revenge thriller that takes place in Britain in the 1790s. A ronin named Fuji (Takehiro Hira) and his teenage daughter Tornado (Koki) are travelling performers who get mixed up with a gang of sadistic criminals and some stolen gold. After seeing her father murdered by Tim Roth's goons, Tornado runs for her life and eventually devotes herself to revenge.

First of all, Japanese fashion model Koki is AMAZING. She's not an action actress, but her presentation is perfect and she knows how to emote, project, and pose with fierce conviction and authority. Death and destruction follow wherever she goes, and her transformation from a bratty and obnoxious teenager to a helpless victim on the run, and ultimately a steely-eyed warrior is tangible, moving, and believable. Takehiro Hira makes an excellent father figure who is both caring and stern, and tries his best to raise an insolent daughter in a foreign land with no additional support. His sacrifice is noble and forces Tornado to grow up and answer for her actions. A disillusioned Tim Roth stumbles his way through the film as the cruel, psychotic, and distant Sugarman, who leads a group of deranged killers to find and kill Tornado. His performance is so disconnected that it adds a sense of creepy discomfort to the film, and it's hard to tell if that was intentional or not.

Shot almost entirely on location in Scotland, the scenery is as gorgeous and evocative as Koki is. The cinematography is very good and the music score is tense and dramatic. It's not an action movie and the pacing can be a little sluggish, but thankfully the running time isn't long. While Tornado does take up a sword to dispatch her enemies, combat is all handled through clever editing and sleight of hand, so don't expect to see any actual fight choreography. That said, the film is more about Tornado's emotional journey and the way of bushido, rather than blood-soaked justice. Apart from a handful of questionable story points that I found disruptive and a lackluster ending, I enjoyed the film and was mesmerized by Koki's presence and performance.