I'd like to wear my bias on my sleeve as much as John Williams wears his influences on his: I love the novels of Haruki Murakami, and it seems John Williams does as well. I like to think of this film as the most faithful adaptation of Murakami I could imagine. Even though it copies no story he wrote, it captures his writing style perfectly.
It appears that have the privilege of being one of the first audiences to see this at the Sydney Film Festival, and I highly encourage everyone to go out and see this. The story is so beautifully simplistic: a man has an affair two years ago, and after hiring a detective who discovered this, his wife disappears without a trace. With the "help" of a strange man in a rabbit suit (one that would look very at home in Donnie Darko) he is lead to a brothel, to a detective, and to his memories of his affair in Starfish Hotel, his usual haunt for business trips that soon become very personal.
What I enjoyed most about this film was the steady pace, which was controlled beautifully by director John Williams. Much like in Murakami's novels, he allowed his characters to really show the complexity of their feelings. Koichi Sato gave a wonderful performance as the abandoned husband. Just like in a Murakami novel, he begins by being in a state of shock that could easily appear to be disinterest, but he portrays the character as was intended: as a man so shocked and confused by the events. As the film progresses this behaviour is interjected with periods of concern and action as he traces the path of his wife. The two female leads played their roles wonderfully, though I would have liked to have seen Tae Kimura play a larger role, I think she played the scorned, but concerned and quietly vengeful wife very well. Kiki as Arisu's love interest never missed a step nor gave away a trick in the movie. Her gazes were so complex and mysterious at times, and sensual and passionate at others. The runaway performance was Akira Emoto as Mr Trickster, the deranged and possibly dangerous rabbit-suited brochure man. He was comical and terrifying without being silly, and it every scene he was in was genuinely disturbing.
The best feature of this movie was the atmosphere. It really played out just like the psychological thrillers mentioned so much in the film. The romances are always tinged with a sense of tragedy and mystery, and the rest of the film is just downright disturbing. Seeing Mr Trickster getting more and more deformed during the film added a bit of horror without falling into cheap shock. But the best part were the incredible settings. The Hotel Starfish, Wonderland (formed and burnt), the mine and even Arisu's house were all hauntingly portrayed.
What I enjoyed most about this film is that it didn't pull any punches. It knew that it was esoteric (from the perspective of understanding rather than enjoyment), and it knew that it wouldn't pander to people who like to tune out during films, but most bravely, it never really made sense for people that were paying attention throughout the entire film. At the end there were so many interpretations possible that it keeps even the most attentive viewer thinking about the events for days afterwards. I very much liked that the film didn't make sense in that way, and I think the experience was all the richer for it.
It appears that have the privilege of being one of the first audiences to see this at the Sydney Film Festival, and I highly encourage everyone to go out and see this. The story is so beautifully simplistic: a man has an affair two years ago, and after hiring a detective who discovered this, his wife disappears without a trace. With the "help" of a strange man in a rabbit suit (one that would look very at home in Donnie Darko) he is lead to a brothel, to a detective, and to his memories of his affair in Starfish Hotel, his usual haunt for business trips that soon become very personal.
What I enjoyed most about this film was the steady pace, which was controlled beautifully by director John Williams. Much like in Murakami's novels, he allowed his characters to really show the complexity of their feelings. Koichi Sato gave a wonderful performance as the abandoned husband. Just like in a Murakami novel, he begins by being in a state of shock that could easily appear to be disinterest, but he portrays the character as was intended: as a man so shocked and confused by the events. As the film progresses this behaviour is interjected with periods of concern and action as he traces the path of his wife. The two female leads played their roles wonderfully, though I would have liked to have seen Tae Kimura play a larger role, I think she played the scorned, but concerned and quietly vengeful wife very well. Kiki as Arisu's love interest never missed a step nor gave away a trick in the movie. Her gazes were so complex and mysterious at times, and sensual and passionate at others. The runaway performance was Akira Emoto as Mr Trickster, the deranged and possibly dangerous rabbit-suited brochure man. He was comical and terrifying without being silly, and it every scene he was in was genuinely disturbing.
The best feature of this movie was the atmosphere. It really played out just like the psychological thrillers mentioned so much in the film. The romances are always tinged with a sense of tragedy and mystery, and the rest of the film is just downright disturbing. Seeing Mr Trickster getting more and more deformed during the film added a bit of horror without falling into cheap shock. But the best part were the incredible settings. The Hotel Starfish, Wonderland (formed and burnt), the mine and even Arisu's house were all hauntingly portrayed.
What I enjoyed most about this film is that it didn't pull any punches. It knew that it was esoteric (from the perspective of understanding rather than enjoyment), and it knew that it wouldn't pander to people who like to tune out during films, but most bravely, it never really made sense for people that were paying attention throughout the entire film. At the end there were so many interpretations possible that it keeps even the most attentive viewer thinking about the events for days afterwards. I very much liked that the film didn't make sense in that way, and I think the experience was all the richer for it.
