nag2103 Reviews

Female Yakuza Tale (1973)

the bloody birth of Tarantino

[9/10 · 16 February 2007]

If you like Tarantino, this will probably appeal to you -- Kill Bill seems to be in no small way based on this film. I would like to take issue with some of the negative reviews: Yes, the plot is complicated. Watching a movie in translation will *never* capture the original subtleties. If you have to watch it twice to understand, the fault is not the director's so much as the language barrier. Also, there were some remarks about the nudity being 'unerotic'. When and why should nudity be erotic? To me, the nudity in this film is all about power - in every scene, with the key exceptions of the opening sequence and closing fight, nudity is equated with weakness and vulnerability. By completely reversing that association in the final scene, nudity (and, by extension, womanhood) is held up as a powerful force.

Koi gokudo (1997)

dark & beautiful

[9/10 · 4 November 2006]

I haven't seen all of his work, but I think this is probably one of Mochizuki's best. In strange way, this film reminds me of trainspotting, and not just in the ample drugs, sex, and violence. We watch the downfall of a sickly and comically-inept family through the eyes of the emotionally numb Kinichi. Kinichi is simply brilliant. He wanders through this dangerous world in a heroin daze, making each life-or-death decision casually. Despite the many reprehensible actions we see him commit, he is still entirely likable. Yoko is also a fantastic character, although we're never quite sure why she came along for the ride. The comedy runs dark, drawing from the surreality of the otherwise grim situations. The yakuza boss in his hospital gown, high as a kite, firing his gun wildly on the hospital roof; the omnipresent cigarette in Kinichi's mouth; the negotiation of his survival from a kiddie pool in a garage. The cinematography is fantastic -- many very creative uses of light and dark, and the grit of Osaka's nether regions is beautifully captured. The mood is of wandering home, drunk, late at night, without any idea of what direction you should be going, or if there is even a home waiting for you.