MovieP4nda

8/10

Very artsy film. The movie is a bit confusing, and at times (and on the whole) can seem to not make any sense. However, I feel as if this entire movie is a critique towards the 2001 era youth culture, easily impressionable and fueled in part by the internet which is on the rise in this movie. The movie still feels relevant today, perhaps even more so, and it really makes you think now when we can look back on what has changed since then. So, the movie has some great deeper meanings in my opinion, but also on the surface it's a great movie. It tries to be a bit of everything and I think it succeeds pretty well at most of what it tries. We have the crime aspect of it all which is pretty interesting, and we have the thriller aspects which keeps you on the toes throughout, we have some drama parts which works reasonably well, as well as some completely off the wall hilarious (and pitch black) japanese humor. And of course, also some really disturbing, grotesque, horror segments. I'd recommend this movie to anyone not afraid to look beneath the surface of the story, and is looking for something a bit different.

manicure

6/10

The influence of old “bad taste” platters and Italian giallos is undeniable, but the mystical feeling of the ending gives the film a whole different feel. At first, it just looked like Sion Sono just came in over 20 years late, but as the film goes on, you start noticing the unique traits of his style and fall in love with it. The only problem is that things get a bit so weird and convoluted that I am not sure if I understood the message. So many scenes appear as simply nonsensical, but you can see that they were designed to unsettle and leave a lasting mark on your mind. About the film’s various interpretations: Sono is obviously trying to make something transgressive and at the same time pointing to the insane rate of suicides in Japan, but I thought he struggled at delivering the message. The children are not the villains nor the cause of the suicides. They keep saying that there is no such thing as the “suicide club”, and even Kuroda concluded that they are not the enemy. I guess they are some kind of mystical entity that helps people get back “connected” with themselves. Mitsuko gets asked if she wants to fix her “connection” or cut it (the Japanese word is “kankei”, which means both connection and interpersonal relationship). She clearly shows her will to fix it, eventually breaking the chain of suicides. But what did they mean by fixing their connection? According to some interviews, it looks like Sono wanted to say that it’s better to die than to live without doubting ourselves or just by adapting to the opinions and ideals of the people around us. The final message is “live as you please”, and in fact, all the people who committed suicide made their own free choice (the way Mitsuko did not choose, which is to “cut” their connection with themselves). It kind of makes sense, but honestly a bit too hard to figure out by just watching the film as it is. Genesis is clearly one of the many copycats who populate message boards. His contributions to the plot’s economy are close to zero, but his scenes were so much fun to watch.