Sion Sono, the famous director from Japan, he is so versatile, he do all kind of movie, from weird to mainstream, all kind of genre explored. I never read this movie's plot, I just watch this because of his name, Sono-san. So, this movie is an original created by him, mixed all of genre from rags to richest, kaiju, fantasy, santa, a bit of romance in this what can I say a really interesting movie. Its weird but in a cute way. Its so funny to watch with all the awkward japanese moment. Only in japan.
6 Reviews
Unexpected and Different Fantasy
info-59183 November 2018
Even though I have seen a few of Sion Sono's films this was a little bit unexpected. Firstly the film starts off as a bit of an awkward romance, a typical out of place pair in an ordinary situation, picked upon by the people around them.
However, as the movie progresses, the movie takes some very interesting and cute turns into a semi surreal and touching fantasy. In some ways, this movie is two separate stories twisted into one, - one starring the legendary Toshiyuki Nishida (known in the West largely from his role as Pigsy in "Monkey") and the other, the central figure Ryo, played by Hiroki Hasegawa.
While not perfect, the movie is touching and emotional, hard to pull off considering some of the surreal circumstance. It has its funny moments, but largely a surreal light drama, and has a touch of the Christmas movie about it. For Sion Sono fans and fans of the fantastic, its worth it for the ending.
However, as the movie progresses, the movie takes some very interesting and cute turns into a semi surreal and touching fantasy. In some ways, this movie is two separate stories twisted into one, - one starring the legendary Toshiyuki Nishida (known in the West largely from his role as Pigsy in "Monkey") and the other, the central figure Ryo, played by Hiroki Hasegawa.
While not perfect, the movie is touching and emotional, hard to pull off considering some of the surreal circumstance. It has its funny moments, but largely a surreal light drama, and has a touch of the Christmas movie about it. For Sion Sono fans and fans of the fantastic, its worth it for the ending.
Love & Peace a.k.a. Rabu and Pisu
wickedmikehampton15 December 2020
I almost dismissed 'Love and Peace' for its comedic overacting but kept going after the television, in the movie's background, found the Japanese presenter asking who bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and had a contestant responding that it couldn't be the USA because they're Japan's friend.
That sidewards commentary on screwed-up modern politics kept me around for the fantasy wherein the loser's turtle gets flushed down the toilet where its offered a wish (by Sewer Santa) which it uses to turn its owner into a rock star.
Outrageously fascinating.
That sidewards commentary on screwed-up modern politics kept me around for the fantasy wherein the loser's turtle gets flushed down the toilet where its offered a wish (by Sewer Santa) which it uses to turn its owner into a rock star.
Outrageously fascinating.
Sion Sono's Versatility on Display!
dccohen-122 October 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Caught "Love and Peace" at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival as a double bill with his new "Tag", and what really clobbered everyone over the head was how versatile Sion Sono is. From surreal guts and gore in "Tag" to "Love and Peace", a heartwarming fantasy flick that really is fit for the entire family. The entire film feels like a labour of love, as if Sono is – working within a constrained budget – using everything he's got, every trick of the trade, to maximize what he's working with. I looked over a few times and the entire audience had big bubbly smiles from the first frame to the credits. And that's no small feat in a theatre full of jaded horror fanatics. Highly recommended for, well, everyone, old and young!
Sion Sono's "JOKER"...
sinistraI25 October 2019
...although these two movies aren't similar genre-wise , but taking a look at the two protagonists and their life, the similarities become more evident. In this movie the outcast can get a grip of himself through the help of whatever you call it: his imaginary mentors, his source of inspiration or just his own will to do something brave, but as a result he becomes arrogant and narcissistic... like Arthur in 'Joker'. But the sole difference between the two being that 'Ryoichi' (this movie's protagonist) doesn't become violent.
And I also want to point out that Sono's movies tend to be shot with much less care for detail and and are more rushed (partly caused by the small budget of his films) than high budget hollywood movies, that's why people might see that quality-wise this movie isn't on par with 'Joker', which I get, but still the message of both movies are very alike, which is what Sono seems to focus on it seems.
And I also want to point out that Sono's movies tend to be shot with much less care for detail and and are more rushed (partly caused by the small budget of his films) than high budget hollywood movies, that's why people might see that quality-wise this movie isn't on par with 'Joker', which I get, but still the message of both movies are very alike, which is what Sono seems to focus on it seems.
Focuses on the emotion / magic between characters, but needed editing/consistency.
welshnew5018 January 2020
Warning: Spoilers
With such a narrow interest-group / age-bracket of an audience, it was at times difficult to try to follow scene by scene emotions and some of the speech between characters when emotion imitated was parallel with individual lines, as characters were going through transitions, so although one can set-aside one's realism-filter, were one watching a gritty dismal russian epic or something,
it did need some cleaning-up / consistency-checks+new or edited writing, between especially, the animations/transient-animals and a human, although the magical link between the main character and his turtle, is meant to also be a such a deep link that WHERE, his emotions are meant to be or be-manifesting, is perhaps the reason for the flexibility.
When doing that, clarity between characters that are meant to be not only expressing themselves and their own reasons, can help to highlight the differences between those who are not a part of or in-amongst something-magic, and those who are not,.. whereas in this there are 1 total background humans, to which there's nothing-much happening, 2, sideline characters of which EITHER the same magic would? should? be happening? but in this movie, some are inconsistently written , others are normal, and 3, the focus main characters with the exception / something-special being the reason for their invisible link/s.
So it does succeed in portraying a from-junk to something-magic contrast and need for a suspension of dis-belief, for the realism-fantasy,..
But, a few other niggling problems also weren't fixed, like the a-bit-too-much believe-ability of the rockers turned singing about keeping your teeth clean? and similar tracks, despite the purpose of the contrast of the character in love/despair, or then relatedly, WHY, he then when getting several opportunities to have re-connected and brought his pet back to his home, disregards it when he would still be in despair from the detachment.
LIKE that one, the film's a little out of order or something,.. a clearer, progressive story of loss and re-acquaintance, is much better for both a simple story, and a young audience,..
whereas this film also has maybe too many parallel sub-progressions, like the Sewer-Santa-Claus, also needing to have a transition of his own, in his yearly vigil/ance rather than being more of a reclusive-wizard, that does not enjoy company - and drinks whiskey? What was that 'touch' for? Unnecessary / doesn't add anything to the story.
Trying some, can help a over-protected child, to cut-loose and live a little? mm yeah, but whiskey's a bit of a steep-climb. How about starting with a CIDER, etc.
----------
So although the cyclic ending rounds up the story for the main character and the turtle, there's unnecessary creative-direction which confuses/distracts/obfuscates the cause&effect of the magic within a realism-magic story, and that makes following the circumstances of the main character, a disjointed,.. 'what's-he-doing-now? ' time-jump character-maturity-trek, following a his multiple transitions over a 6 months, or a year or whatever it was,.. but withOUT, clearer adjustment to his own, and instead, what he BECOMES,.. a little too artificially, or without convincing acting of his own.
Instead, after becoming the 'rock-star' ... he's practically a different character, and while that might be ok after ENOUGH transitions,.. more time on-screen with the band, as they were adjusting to their new member, and trying to figure him out, where did his passion come FROM, etc...
which also could've added to the mystery of the magic in the story, too,
instead, it's done and dusted in <5m ... and again, too narrow, for most of the audience, to accept, so easily.
Is that realism again? mmmm maybe, but im trying to describe something else,.. too much condensed in too little an amount of film-time,.. if he's meant to've gone through several transitions/transformations (of character) ... while a lot of time is spent on the sewerage-wizard and toys/strays themselves, without the character of the sewerage-wizard, having enough of a change / enough-changes in his life, to spend that much time ON, if the film was to be focusing on connections love can facilitate, or what strong-emotions can do FOR one, when the clarity of the before/after, from a timid easily-intimidated office-worker to a rock star, is ALREADY there, to build on, or to get accepted by the audience, before then spending time on the magic inbetween the separated friends/comrades, or the potential connection between him and his fem-co-worker.
IF different futures were meant to be left un-tied in terms of the story, so that AFTER the end of the film, the possibilities with those un-finished sub-stories for the character are meant to be linked with the change in him AFTER having chosen to express strong emotions (well, after being leashed on a chain ), then maybe, the amount of time spend on him as a rock-star, was consistent with the purpose of the portrayal, as in the scene where the Santa claims that the dissolving sweets can help you to talk, when "scientists can't see", and so after the main character finds his ability to express strong emotion, a lot should,..
But i still think that in terms of producing something with magic a integral part of the magic-realism focus in terms of WHAT facilitates the change to help one express strong emotion,.. that a bit like the disposability issue that the humans-commit/dis-regard the significance of for others, that more direct portrayals of the magic itself, in small degrees, rather than ONLY personal-transformation, would've made the NEED, to consider waste and disposability, more on a small scale, instead of granted, or gifted, magic.
Taking a leaf from Toy Story, in terms of toys OWN liberations, or similar plots, focuses more on the animateds' needs, or unknowns of purpose and being, and abandonment.
Perhaps some of the anger in the previous lead singer of the band when wanting him to return to anti-establishmentism, is from a even worse upbringing / opportunity, and so portraying humans as with more experience, with the magic in parallel, might've been a better choice.
Battle-Angel Elita, might be a better example of the distance AND animatory potentials, of scrap / aquiescent-antiquity, or whatnot. memory in different places, what ELSE, aside the flesh of what humans dispose, is being thrown away, etc.
That sub-plot is not ignored, it's a central part of the sewerage-Santa ... but it's not WITH the main character,.. all the way THROUGH, the movie.
He gets to not escape, but forget about that during most of the film, while the toys live a parallel reality, and the two do not meet enough, compared to what they could've.
Instead, ONLY the 1 turtle does, aside from the only-temporary venture of the team of toys that conceal it in the cardboard-box trick to get the turtle the oppertunity to re-connect,.. but like i said before, the main character then doesn't do more to make sure he's reconnected with his friend/love, or at least, the agent and band, in being able to've realized how important it was to him, don't mind enough to help it to escape the lab, or something else empowering / defying the supposedly simply evil science.
*single shoulder shrug* Even if ignoring the insult and simplicity of the "they can't see me because they're scientists" magic,..
I still felt that his supposedly so dominating his emotions NEED, was stretched wayyyyy beyond only a relatively simple choice of behavior - finding his pet again, and bringing it home.
That basic motivation, was not enough for all his then re-directed focus OF that emotion, as though he couldn't say no, DESPITE becoming more confident, and self-expressive.
He becomes the head of the band, begins to start to tell others what to do per inpatient-'creative'-dictator,..
but then doesn't have the emotional-expression, to simply kick in the door of the labs, and liberate his friend/love?
----------
rrrmphh... nah. kids RESPECT liberation per defying authority,.. not just having 'little-secrets' ... between oneself and the guy who puts something sweet in your mouth.
*retches* where's a bucket?
it did need some cleaning-up / consistency-checks+new or edited writing, between especially, the animations/transient-animals and a human, although the magical link between the main character and his turtle, is meant to also be a such a deep link that WHERE, his emotions are meant to be or be-manifesting, is perhaps the reason for the flexibility.
When doing that, clarity between characters that are meant to be not only expressing themselves and their own reasons, can help to highlight the differences between those who are not a part of or in-amongst something-magic, and those who are not,.. whereas in this there are 1 total background humans, to which there's nothing-much happening, 2, sideline characters of which EITHER the same magic would? should? be happening? but in this movie, some are inconsistently written , others are normal, and 3, the focus main characters with the exception / something-special being the reason for their invisible link/s.
So it does succeed in portraying a from-junk to something-magic contrast and need for a suspension of dis-belief, for the realism-fantasy,..
But, a few other niggling problems also weren't fixed, like the a-bit-too-much believe-ability of the rockers turned singing about keeping your teeth clean? and similar tracks, despite the purpose of the contrast of the character in love/despair, or then relatedly, WHY, he then when getting several opportunities to have re-connected and brought his pet back to his home, disregards it when he would still be in despair from the detachment.
LIKE that one, the film's a little out of order or something,.. a clearer, progressive story of loss and re-acquaintance, is much better for both a simple story, and a young audience,..
whereas this film also has maybe too many parallel sub-progressions, like the Sewer-Santa-Claus, also needing to have a transition of his own, in his yearly vigil/ance rather than being more of a reclusive-wizard, that does not enjoy company - and drinks whiskey? What was that 'touch' for? Unnecessary / doesn't add anything to the story.
Trying some, can help a over-protected child, to cut-loose and live a little? mm yeah, but whiskey's a bit of a steep-climb. How about starting with a CIDER, etc.
----------
So although the cyclic ending rounds up the story for the main character and the turtle, there's unnecessary creative-direction which confuses/distracts/obfuscates the cause&effect of the magic within a realism-magic story, and that makes following the circumstances of the main character, a disjointed,.. 'what's-he-doing-now? ' time-jump character-maturity-trek, following a his multiple transitions over a 6 months, or a year or whatever it was,.. but withOUT, clearer adjustment to his own, and instead, what he BECOMES,.. a little too artificially, or without convincing acting of his own.
Instead, after becoming the 'rock-star' ... he's practically a different character, and while that might be ok after ENOUGH transitions,.. more time on-screen with the band, as they were adjusting to their new member, and trying to figure him out, where did his passion come FROM, etc...
which also could've added to the mystery of the magic in the story, too,
instead, it's done and dusted in <5m ... and again, too narrow, for most of the audience, to accept, so easily.
Is that realism again? mmmm maybe, but im trying to describe something else,.. too much condensed in too little an amount of film-time,.. if he's meant to've gone through several transitions/transformations (of character) ... while a lot of time is spent on the sewerage-wizard and toys/strays themselves, without the character of the sewerage-wizard, having enough of a change / enough-changes in his life, to spend that much time ON, if the film was to be focusing on connections love can facilitate, or what strong-emotions can do FOR one, when the clarity of the before/after, from a timid easily-intimidated office-worker to a rock star, is ALREADY there, to build on, or to get accepted by the audience, before then spending time on the magic inbetween the separated friends/comrades, or the potential connection between him and his fem-co-worker.
IF different futures were meant to be left un-tied in terms of the story, so that AFTER the end of the film, the possibilities with those un-finished sub-stories for the character are meant to be linked with the change in him AFTER having chosen to express strong emotions (well, after being leashed on a chain ), then maybe, the amount of time spend on him as a rock-star, was consistent with the purpose of the portrayal, as in the scene where the Santa claims that the dissolving sweets can help you to talk, when "scientists can't see", and so after the main character finds his ability to express strong emotion, a lot should,..
But i still think that in terms of producing something with magic a integral part of the magic-realism focus in terms of WHAT facilitates the change to help one express strong emotion,.. that a bit like the disposability issue that the humans-commit/dis-regard the significance of for others, that more direct portrayals of the magic itself, in small degrees, rather than ONLY personal-transformation, would've made the NEED, to consider waste and disposability, more on a small scale, instead of granted, or gifted, magic.
Taking a leaf from Toy Story, in terms of toys OWN liberations, or similar plots, focuses more on the animateds' needs, or unknowns of purpose and being, and abandonment.
Perhaps some of the anger in the previous lead singer of the band when wanting him to return to anti-establishmentism, is from a even worse upbringing / opportunity, and so portraying humans as with more experience, with the magic in parallel, might've been a better choice.
Battle-Angel Elita, might be a better example of the distance AND animatory potentials, of scrap / aquiescent-antiquity, or whatnot. memory in different places, what ELSE, aside the flesh of what humans dispose, is being thrown away, etc.
That sub-plot is not ignored, it's a central part of the sewerage-Santa ... but it's not WITH the main character,.. all the way THROUGH, the movie.
He gets to not escape, but forget about that during most of the film, while the toys live a parallel reality, and the two do not meet enough, compared to what they could've.
Instead, ONLY the 1 turtle does, aside from the only-temporary venture of the team of toys that conceal it in the cardboard-box trick to get the turtle the oppertunity to re-connect,.. but like i said before, the main character then doesn't do more to make sure he's reconnected with his friend/love, or at least, the agent and band, in being able to've realized how important it was to him, don't mind enough to help it to escape the lab, or something else empowering / defying the supposedly simply evil science.
*single shoulder shrug* Even if ignoring the insult and simplicity of the "they can't see me because they're scientists" magic,..
I still felt that his supposedly so dominating his emotions NEED, was stretched wayyyyy beyond only a relatively simple choice of behavior - finding his pet again, and bringing it home.
That basic motivation, was not enough for all his then re-directed focus OF that emotion, as though he couldn't say no, DESPITE becoming more confident, and self-expressive.
He becomes the head of the band, begins to start to tell others what to do per inpatient-'creative'-dictator,..
but then doesn't have the emotional-expression, to simply kick in the door of the labs, and liberate his friend/love?
----------
rrrmphh... nah. kids RESPECT liberation per defying authority,.. not just having 'little-secrets' ... between oneself and the guy who puts something sweet in your mouth.
*retches* where's a bucket?
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