A Triptych of withdrawal, failed relationships and engagement (Tokyo! (DVD))

Member Name: Praskipark

Product:	Tokyo! (DVD)
Date:	26/04/09 (163 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Three short interesting flms made by art-house directors

Disadvantages: One of the films a bit too excessive in direction

Film Only Review
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It isn't very often we see short films at the cinema. Films under 30 minutes are often used by film students as experimental runs or by directors as a showcase for their work. Major feature films have been made from ideas explored in some shorts but as an art form the short is often the caviar of the film world; small, sumptious and only experienced by specialists.

Recently short film collections have started being shown in cinemas and have taken major cities as their main theme. For example; Paris, je t'aime and New York, I Love You; both of which introduce a number of pieces by well-known directors, writers and actors which depict a story or illustrate an aspect of life in a certain city. The short film is a good way to represent the fractured, yet extreme personal nature of the modern city, with its large number of neighbourhoods and ethnic communities compressed into a small space.

Tokyo! is one more entry into this genre. Three short films that make up one innovative compilation and have all been directed by art-house writers/directors: Michael Gondry - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Leos Carax - Lovers on the Bridge, and Joon-ho Bong - The Host. Tokyo is different from some of its predecessors because all three pieces have a longer narrative and each is noticeably different in the way each piece starts out credibly, but by the end is nonsensical and surreal.

Each short film explores the themes of solitude and living on the margins of society, and the ways people cope, to different degrees of success.

This series of films opens with Interior Design, directed by Michel Gondry. The short film tells the story of Akiya and Hiroko, a young couple, looking for a flat in the city. Their funds are limited and the only option available to them is a vermin infested hole. Akiya has a job in a department store wrapping presents to make a few extra dollars but she is in fact an aspiring film director. She is also very indecisive and lacks focus which annoys her boyfriend immensely. Their host becomes increasingly annoyed by their presence and Hiroko falls into deep despair. I will refrain from telling you what happens next because it will spoil the story but I can tell you that it is totally bizarre yet makes sense to Hiroko and has Michel Gondry's quirky stamp on it.

Merde (the French phrase filler for excrement) is the poorest of the three pieces. It begins in a scary way: a creature unknown: wild and demented, is threatening downtown Tokyo. He appears suddenly, running wild, frightening visitors, stealing purses and wallets, licking females on the walkways and violently flinging grenades into public places. The media has gone suitably crazy, and when the madman is arrested and sent to jail, it comes to light that he belongs to a mysterious tribe and there is only one person who can communicate with him and that turns out to be a lawyer from Paris. The tale devolves into............

Shaking Tokyo, is the strongest film of all three entries. This is a forceful story of a shut-in (hikkimori, in Japanese) who has not left his apartment for ten years. His flat walls are piled high with pizza boxes, all neatly stacked. All his food is brought to him by delivery people. We are never really sure if he is really agoraphobic, it is a little unclear. One day, he falls instantly in love with a pizza delivery girl, who passes out in the hallway when an earthquake strikes the city. Soon, he finds out that the girl has also become a shut-in, and his love for her inspires him to take the risky undertaking of leaving his apartment, where he makes a terrifying discovery.......

It's hard to describe what I feel about Tokyo. All three stories are creative and have strong themes. Hiroko, the wild street creature and the agoraphobic all suffer from a distrust of people - or, perhaps a hatred or dislike of people. But they choose varied ways to express their incoherence with society. Hiroko, eloquently, the shut-in, with eventual bravery; and the wild man, with violence and devastation.

Shaking Tokyo is the most relevant in illustrating the sheer desolation of modern life, in a multi-tiered story that works as both a real expression of disconnectedness and a metaphysical commentary on social connections mediated by a digital culture.

On the other hand, Interior design is a pure fairy story and seems to suggest that to overcome this sheer loneliness you have to be willing to care for each other.

The most problematic entry is definitely Merde. To me, it seems like the film is covering too many things at once - a discourse against the media circus, a commentary on the judicial system, and even a tale of a twisted religious figure. The film seems too heavy-handed which I find annoying at times and if there is to be a good outcome then this excessiveness undermines it and confuses.

Overall, I do think Tokyo is an effective contribution to this short anthology genre. It gives us an interesting view of three very individual filmmakers' work side by side, and it also makes us think about issues such as withdrawal, engagement and why relationships don't always work.

Not my usually type of movie although I do love Michel Gondry's work. It is a little artsy but makes a nice change from the rom coms, epics and action movies. It's pretty good.

Summary: Three films in one - good value