[keirarts]

Originally Posted by Frankie Teardrop

TOMIE UNLIMITED - Newish release from the director of 'Machine Girl' et al. I'm not familiar with the series / Manga, so have little to go on by way of context apart from my exposure to Japanese horror in general. Seems to conform to a certain J-Horror template, one that blends Cronenbergian imagery with putatively supernatural themes, although the latter might be thought to be displaced by metaphysical headf*ckery in this case, another Cronenbergian trope. Whatever. It's certainly very strange and ultimately priveleges warped imagery over narrative, although I say this often in relation to Japanese films of its ilk and then am never very sure as to whether I've missed/misunderstood culture-specific aspects which might render some of the outward bizarreness sensible (intuitively, I somehow think not, though). Also features more than its quota of wrongness... wonder how it would've fared down at the BBFC a decade ago (ie a centipede made up of a recursive sequence of evil daughter's face crawls into skirt of mother). After all this freakery I found myself having to re-watch MAN BITES DOG in an attempt to return to earth. Still for me a brilliant film, love the way it all veers drunkenly (but calculatedly) from the killer's insouciance to social critique to bleak scenes of cruelty that for once really do stick in the throat and honour the attempt at deconstruction (of the complicity of media with violence) offered here. But maybe I'm being too earnest - it works as a blacker than black comedy, that's the way I always approach it. I mean, it's just hilarious, like the bit where the second film crew pops up and... but then, there'll be a really depressing murder and the laughter too will die - wonderful piece of manipulation, ABOUT manipulation. I like the film's harsh monochrome look - verite noir in the ruins of modernity. And I like it all way more than I like Haneke - similar themes, but less evasive.

Tomie Collection DVD Region 1 US Import NTSC: Amazon.co.uk: Artist Not Provided: Film & TV


check out the tomie collection above or junji itos museum of horror. Also uzamaki (vortex) or the spiral manga. All good!