Yes that's right, sunny days are here again. Which of course means it's time for sitting in the dark with the curtains closed to sit through plenty of ultra absurd, ultra violent foreign movies. What else were you expecting? Many years ago my mind was twisted forever after an explosion of DVD releases from the likes of CineAsia and Tartan that included such exciting and deranged classics as Oldboy, Versus and Battle Royale. It was a brain twisting eye opener to say the least, and something that meant I'd forever have an interest in this sort of world cinema. Halcyon days or blood soaked nightmares? Perhaps both and more. Let's take a look at a few movies in this vein.
I SAW THE DEVIL (2010)
You know what they say, don't go fighting monsters or one day you'll find yourself smashing a man's genitals with household objects. After an ill advised venture into the films of Kim Ji-woon via second rate actioner The Last Stand and mixed bag Western mash up The Good, The Bad, The Weird; I finally got around to seeing a better received entry in his back catalogue - and it doesn't disappoint. Part horror, part revenge thriller and even a little of the very darkest of comedy; a government agent goes on a quest to punish a serial killer - both mentally and physically.
It's a bizarre and emotionally draining ride that jumps from grim torturous horror to strangely satisfying moments of vengeance - and a story that never quite decides who the bigger monster is. Like many of the extreme Korean movies it's also very eye catching to look at, while being equally eye watering during the nastiest moments. The mixture of tones actually works as an advantage as the story goes through moments of grief, horror, and madness. There are a few strange plot devices - particularly the tracker planted to follow the murderer - but it adds to the surreal nightmare atmosphere and allows for some good cat and mouse moments.
The two leads play off each other well as the cold inner rage of the hero contrasts with the grotesque extrovert desires of his quarry, and at times you feel pity on both of their behalves. The pacing might take a while to build momentum particularly in the early stages before the protagonist's plan has crystallised, but once things are moving they don't let up. As a journey into hell it's as gripping as it is repugnant and maybe even a little funny too, though you might feel bad for laughing.
4/5
THIRST (2009)
It feels like a long time since the so called Vengeance Trilogy had everyone talking about hammer fights and octopus for dinner, but perhaps it's just as I had been out of the loop for a while. Another overdue viewing, it's one I ultimately found unsatisfying despite some striking imagery and interesting ideas. There are a lot of good elements here - the strange mix of religion and vampirism, the juxtaposition of a reborn saviour feeding on the helpless, and the eventual madness and guilt; but it never clicked for me. It's kind of unbalanced like some of the characters turn out to be.
Perhaps it's the structure which felt too unpolished or a little messy early on. The hero is a man of god who becomes a creature of the night after a hospital experiment to find cures to a fatal illness. It's a great setup that could allow for all kinds of good character conflict. The initial scenes where he's choosing to give himself to medical science and the subsequent parts where he comes back to the world and visits his past acquaintances are interesting... but they just come across as unfocused with odd bits thrown together.
It gets a lot better once the vampire affair gets going and things become stranger and more imaginative - particularly when the romance starts to become more sinister and the early facade of innocence breaks down. There are also some great effects moments and an incredibly striking vampire household design that tries to replicate the brightness of the daytime instead of being a dark lair. But despite some wry humour and a lot of good choices the first half kept me waiting without being quenched for too long.
2/5
TOKYO GORE POLICE (2008)
Well now... where to even begin with this one? The surreal semi-future world full of strange RoboCop style commercials? The criminals that sprout weapons and gadgets from their wounds whenever they're injured? The merciless samurai cops with a pop star in central control? It's difficult to describe and is perhaps something best left to be discovered. For those who like this sort of surprise of course; twisted minds and strong stomachs only need apply.
In what is apparently a future Japan (though it's only hinted at) the police are now a privatised militia who execute people for minor crimes. Among them are special units created to hunt down a new breed of mutated criminals dubbed 'engineers' who for reasons explained later (admittedly not sensible ones) have a tumour inside that causes injuries such as dismembered limbs to grow into weapons like swords and guns. These are just some of the more restrained ideas the movie throws out. This specific sub-genre is something known as gore punk or sometimes Ero Guro... and frankly it's ridiculous.
The cult cinema of Japan should by now hold no surprises to me after all this time, but despite this being somewhere in the vein of Tetsuo: The Iron Man and more recent efforts like Meatball Machine I still found myself laughing and the sheer lunacy of certain sequences. The line between extreme cinema and outrageous manga has become rather blurred. At times it's almost incomprehensible but often manages to be greatly entertaining, check it out if you're excited to see a fine blend of flying body parts, crazy fetish clubs and acid firing mutants.
3/5
ICHI THE KILLER (2001)
Last up I recently took time to revisit an older release with Takashi Miike's mix of extreme violence and comic book insanity. It's like coming full circle and meeting up with an old friend. An utterly insane and demented friend with a broken mind and a snappy dress sense. The digital effects may be dated and the washed out film quality marks this as a product of the early 2000s in Japanese cinema, but there are certain aspects that still retain their signature bite. It's a film where the title appears in a puddle of human bodily fluids after all.
The characters are all bizarre and twisted and the imagery is completely over the top. There are crazy amounts of violent splatter and some crazier fashion on display. Seriously, even with all the gore effects there are some very loud shirts that are just as notable. Yakuza plots interconnect with threads about hypnotherapy, mind control and sadomasochism... so don't expect any relatable characters or a story conclusion that adds up on the first viewing. It may appear to be a crime thriller on the outside but it soon becomes a horror story amongst other things.
On the surface there's a plot involving a plan to wipe out two groups of mob bosses. Kakihara, the guy with cinema's best Chelsea smile does a lot of awful things as he goes around trying to get to the bottom of it. But these are just the simple parts of explaining how things go down. Elsewhere there are themes of fearless masochists battling cowardly sadists, depressed characters living in denial and twisted versions of the usual mobster loyalty tropes. Ultimately I can only recommend this to those looking for new foreign cinema kicks or a certain kind of horror experience, but it's a nightmarish ride that's too strange to be missed.
4/5
