Russell
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Gozu 
A comedy.. I was lucky enough to go to the premier here:
Gozu (Gokudo Kyofu Daigekijo)
18.10hrs
Director - Takashi Miike, Producers - Harumi Sone & Kana Koido, Director of Photography - Kazunari Tanaka, Script - Sakichi Satô, Cast - Shô Aikawa, Ken'ichi Endô, Kanpei Hazama, Shôhei Hino, Renji Ishibashi, Masaya Katô, Tamio Kawachi, Susumu Kimura, Hiroyuki Nagato, Hitoshi Ozawa, Kazuyoshi Ozawa, Harumi Sone, Hideki Sone, Tetsurô Tanba, Keiko Tomita
A more recent film from the undeniably prolific and completely insane Japanese director Takashi Miike, Gozu once again shatters preconceptions and defies all expectations. A yakuza meets horror meets comedy film with love interest, the opening sequence shows gangster Ozaki (Sho Aikawa) protecting his boss from a trained attack dog sent to kill him. Within seconds the highly vicious Chihuahua is no more, having met its end splattered on plate glass window, and the boss is none too impressed with Ozakis mental stability.
As a result underling Minami (Hideki Sone) is instructed to take his brother to a family disposal dump in Nagoya. Following the tribulations of a trained yakuza attack car, Ozaki is killed sooner than expected when his brother brakes suddenly. Unsure of what to do, Minami stops at a roadside café in order to inform his boss. While inside, the body disappears, sparking a search in which Minamis tyre is punctured, stranding him in a wonderland of odd but extremely funny characters. These include a lactating inn hostess, transvestite café owner, a sake vendor who reads his lines straight from the script, disposal site operatives who press and keep their victims skins, and a Minotaur. And in case you think thats not enough, Ozaki is reincarnated as a beautiful woman, who tries to seduce the boss.
This all makes for an uproariously funny, decidedly odd-ball movie which had the majority of the cinema in stitches, and marks an almost complete departure from Miikes earlier works. Yet despite the insanity, dreamy/fever inspired logic, and bewildering twists in the story, there is an intelligent approach to the film which belies the occasional immaturity of the humour.
While those with sensitive dispositions may do well to avoid this flick, it is nowhere near as gory a most of Miikes films, and the occasional explicit scenes are well fragmented by humour. Interesting themes include Minamis sexual insecurities, a homoerotic link between the yakuza brothers, who shared much when alive and even more upon Ozakis re-incarnation, and the inimitable surrealism running throughout this work. An example of this is one of the most original and comical death scenes Ive seen in a very long time, which still induces a wince and chuckle after almost a month. The deliriously quirky script of Sakichi Sato marks a return to Ichi the Killers director/writer collaboration, while the cast sees many previous Miike actors return, including Hideki Sone (Agitator, Graveyard of Honour, Deadly Outlaw: Rekka), Sho Aikawa (DOA, Rainy Dog, Ley Lines, Shangri-La), and Tetsuro Tanba (The Happiness of the Katakuris).
Possibly one of the weirdest films Ive ever seen, Gozu comes highly recommended. A perfect balance is struck between countless elements, which - even if they dislike the outlandish humour many viewers will appreciate (the movie even made it to Director's Fortnight at Cannes). It also goes to prove that Takeshi Miike loses none of his relevance, originality or creativity despite an increasingly hectic schedule.
A comedy.. I was lucky enough to go to the premier here:Gozu (Gokudo Kyofu Daigekijo)
18.10hrs
Director - Takashi Miike, Producers - Harumi Sone & Kana Koido, Director of Photography - Kazunari Tanaka, Script - Sakichi Satô, Cast - Shô Aikawa, Ken'ichi Endô, Kanpei Hazama, Shôhei Hino, Renji Ishibashi, Masaya Katô, Tamio Kawachi, Susumu Kimura, Hiroyuki Nagato, Hitoshi Ozawa, Kazuyoshi Ozawa, Harumi Sone, Hideki Sone, Tetsurô Tanba, Keiko Tomita
A more recent film from the undeniably prolific and completely insane Japanese director Takashi Miike, Gozu once again shatters preconceptions and defies all expectations. A yakuza meets horror meets comedy film with love interest, the opening sequence shows gangster Ozaki (Sho Aikawa) protecting his boss from a trained attack dog sent to kill him. Within seconds the highly vicious Chihuahua is no more, having met its end splattered on plate glass window, and the boss is none too impressed with Ozakis mental stability.
As a result underling Minami (Hideki Sone) is instructed to take his brother to a family disposal dump in Nagoya. Following the tribulations of a trained yakuza attack car, Ozaki is killed sooner than expected when his brother brakes suddenly. Unsure of what to do, Minami stops at a roadside café in order to inform his boss. While inside, the body disappears, sparking a search in which Minamis tyre is punctured, stranding him in a wonderland of odd but extremely funny characters. These include a lactating inn hostess, transvestite café owner, a sake vendor who reads his lines straight from the script, disposal site operatives who press and keep their victims skins, and a Minotaur. And in case you think thats not enough, Ozaki is reincarnated as a beautiful woman, who tries to seduce the boss.
This all makes for an uproariously funny, decidedly odd-ball movie which had the majority of the cinema in stitches, and marks an almost complete departure from Miikes earlier works. Yet despite the insanity, dreamy/fever inspired logic, and bewildering twists in the story, there is an intelligent approach to the film which belies the occasional immaturity of the humour.
While those with sensitive dispositions may do well to avoid this flick, it is nowhere near as gory a most of Miikes films, and the occasional explicit scenes are well fragmented by humour. Interesting themes include Minamis sexual insecurities, a homoerotic link between the yakuza brothers, who shared much when alive and even more upon Ozakis re-incarnation, and the inimitable surrealism running throughout this work. An example of this is one of the most original and comical death scenes Ive seen in a very long time, which still induces a wince and chuckle after almost a month. The deliriously quirky script of Sakichi Sato marks a return to Ichi the Killers director/writer collaboration, while the cast sees many previous Miike actors return, including Hideki Sone (Agitator, Graveyard of Honour, Deadly Outlaw: Rekka), Sho Aikawa (DOA, Rainy Dog, Ley Lines, Shangri-La), and Tetsuro Tanba (The Happiness of the Katakuris).
Possibly one of the weirdest films Ive ever seen, Gozu comes highly recommended. A perfect balance is struck between countless elements, which - even if they dislike the outlandish humour many viewers will appreciate (the movie even made it to Director's Fortnight at Cannes). It also goes to prove that Takeshi Miike loses none of his relevance, originality or creativity despite an increasingly hectic schedule.
