Camo's 2018 Movie Log

Damn wasn't aware this is a prequel to Suicide Club that was made later, oh well i think it's fine to watch them in either order as i didn't have any problems following this. Just hope the events shown here aren't a twist or something in Suicide Club or i've possibly ruined that, watching it next anyway. Makes me want to see that even more now. While there's a lot of noticeable similarities this was vastly different from Love Exposure in a lot of ways too, this was calm, haunting and more realistic. There wasn't as much blatant humour or goofiness, this was more subdued and you could easier believe the events of this film happened, Love Exposure is more like a fantasy. Still it was probably even more demented than Love Exposure. The "family" was utterly insane, i mean when she starts calling that dude "dad" for the first time, jesus christ. This didn't grip me instantly like Love Exposure but that's due to the way Sono has chosen to tell both stories and i don't think either really has more value, Noriko definitely sucks you in after starting like a typical lost teenage girl drama. Was also a big fan of the seperate timelines, showing us how someone ended up on this path while at the same time showing us how her loved ones dealt with it.

This film was so dark, so was the last third of Love Exposure but there was always hope (and strong humour) present there, this film made it clear there was no hope and we're watching the characters spiral towards something horrible. There was a lot of similarities with Love Exposure but also stark differences like the caring father character in this. That's something i like, characters aren't always portrayed and thought of as the same in his films, Love Exposure clearly has a big problem with men and fathers/father figures in particular but Sono is taking a different look at them here; although still not totally flattering or different. Think reading The People Who Eat Darkness was a good primer for this even though i had no idea this existed at the time. One of the main things focused on in that book is a particular Tokyo nightclub culture where older wealthy Japanese men pay the girls working in those clubs to act like they are romantically and/or sexually interested in them. The men know this is all an act and they won't actually get anything from it, they can't touch or anything, yet they still pay incredible sums of money for that service. This "fake family" thing feels very similar to that so it all felt plausible and extra dark when you consider what that books about. I'm also curious if Sono's fixation with cults has anything to do with Aum Shinrikyo and the Sarin attacks, i mean that happened five years before he made Suicide Club and the subway is even a central part of that. Anyway i thought this was very good, may even like it more after i've seen Suicide Club which will hopefully be soon.

+

This was right up my alley; crippling poverty, troubled youths. Sad and brutal but not a misery fest, just observing these people going about their lives that they are used to. Found it interesting that there was little messing about, not many big regrets for the characters despite their abhorrent behaviour. Jaibo was obviously a bad influence but the kids were led pretty easily and they didn't really seem consumed by guilt, well one of them was with the murder but they didn't flinch after their beating of the blind man or the man with no legs. Plus there was even one character that casually brought up the murder to Jaibo as if it was nothing, guessing he had a good reason for it showing how corrupted most peoples morals were. That dude had a job and a good family all things considered and yet it didn't bother him. I'd imagine Jaibo himself was led astray when he was those kids ages by troubled older boys, that's pure conjecture on my part but either way the poverty and seemingly no hope was the big factor in their behaviour. Even the one good kid "Eyes" was almost corrupted when he lifted the rock to the blind man. Was very surprised how bleak and brutal this was. I was expecting that i would respect it as an early influence on similar future films but that it would be tame by todays standards. All it was really missing was graphic violence. The film had a knack for making me very angry: the blind man and man with no legs beatings, Jaibo jeopardizing Pedro's job, his one slither of hope then calmly hanging around with his mother and the policeman while he got the blame, Jaibo and Pedro's mother, etc. Jaibo was a great villain but he was clearly the product of terrible circumstances if his story is to be believed, and interestingly it was seeing what he had become that made Pedro want to become good. Was nervous on how it was going to end thought Pedro would get redemption, thankfully it went all in and completed the horrific cycle of poverty. Also like that Bunuel incorporated his surrealism that he's famous for to a degree into such a straightforward film in a believable way with the weird dream sequence as well as some other imagery.

I'd be very surprised if this was one of Bunuel's best, but i'd also be surprised if i liked many more than this as it was perfect for me. Great film. Kinda feel miserable after seeing this but i think that's the mark of a great film.

This was so good. Hilarious, clever and oddly sweet. Walter Matthau is great but like all her films it's the script more than anything, his delivery coupled with the lines he's been given and the way Elaine frames everything is the best. I love that we're told Henry is an awful person that everyone hates and yet he's not annoying or anything, what he does to Henrietta is no doubt awful but he is polite and generally likeable which makes my own reaction to his behaviour all the more confusing. Taking this at face value Henry is a real sh!thead but with its silliness and light tone it's just hilarious and even kind of endearing. He's kind of brilliant in a rotten weasely sort of way, one of my favourite scenes is when Henry and the lawyer are fighting over Henry's true intentions; just the way they sit her off to the side then start talking to each other as if she wasn't even there . One of my favourites is him sitting listing all the stuff he needs to kill her then he gets annoyed when she quitely walks in, he's completely oblivious to his own terrible character which is evident from the lawyer meeting at the start and he gets disproportionately irritated at her for the smallest things, so good. I also like that he takes everything in stride in such a suave way, "So will you take it? But that's usury! Yes it's usury. I'll take it.", that sort of thing fits Matthau really well as he always seems kind of absent minded and not very exciteable to me. I mean Droopy Dog used to always make me think of him when i was a kid.

I loved Henrietta so much, good to see May can act as well. Her character is so likeable yet you don't feel bad for her, i dunno she feels invincible obviously that's related to her low intelligence which makes her extra naive but i dunno i find characters that are that simply content endearing as long as they aren't being harmed, while she is being used she isn't aware of it and she is enjoying all of her time with Henry. If this was a serious drama i'd be really annoyed at this situation but there's some kind of mutual benefit here that works for a comedy. Also man Henry's looks of pure disgust towards her gave me the most confusing feelings ever because they felt so real and yet i didn't understand, she's great haha. One of my favourite lines which i feel basically sums her character up was "Oh that's really ridiculous Andrew, it's very naive of you. If Henry disclaimed all my money then i'd have to write all his checks for him and then people really would think he was marrying me for my money." Especially how it perfectly suits Henry's situation, it basically saves him, both of them were perfect together which makes the ending all the more fitting even though Henry probably doesn't deserve it.

Anyway Elaine May is the best. Would have this first then The Heartbreak Kid, then Mikey and Nicky but they're all great. Only got Ishtar left from her, too bad she made barely any films.

+

Loved the shots of nature but i think this was too understated. It put me to sleep a bit, usually the calm tone of Reichardt's films engage me in a unique way but my mind did wander at times here. Both performances were good and Yo La Tengo was the perfect choice for the soundtrack but it failed to keep my attention. Still it's short and beautiful so it certainly wasn't bad.