TAKASHI MIIKE appreciation thread

guy_alcindor · July 2005

You guys talk about Kitano being hard - this guy has that shit on lock. Audition, Ichi, etc., all crazy. I just rented Gozu today, going to watch it tonight, some of the stills on the back cover look mental. Miike has a way of making you feel as if your skin was peeling back over itself with someone playing needlepoints over the exposed flesh...I like my miso[/b]

NachoManCandySandwich · July 2005

I'll second that. Not much love out there for this guy yet or what?

Kitano is undoubtedly great but sometimes I need Miike's contrast to all that intentional awkwardness, pregnant-pauses, and Joe Hisaishi sappy high notes. Then again, necrophilia, nipple-removal, and dancing zombies aren't everyone's bowl of miso.

Although I don't always want to be punished for being a viewer, something Miike seems to strive for, his films are often rewarding. I was really impressed by Visitor Q[/b], and the way he perfectly apes a sentimental tear-jerk ending.

The Happiness of the Katakuri's[/b] (Katakuri-ke no koufuku) was something else too. Anyone see this? Imawano Kiyoshiro, a popular veteran rock singer, was hysterical.

Miike is pretty prolific too. Something like 40 films??
bonkers.

But, I wasn't crazy about Audition.[/b]

twoply · July 2005

Yeah, I don't watch Kitano because he's hard (although he very clearly is), I watch his films because they interest me. I do not find torture scenes interesting. I'm not dissing them, there's just no incentive for me to watch.

guy_alcindor · July 2005

I was being facetious more than anything when I played up Miike's gratuitousness. AUDITION I found to be a tempered, sensitive examination of human love - that is of course until he derails the whole thing for the ending...

MoSS · July 2005

Miike is overated, and maybe the most overated Japanese director today. IZO was a pile of shit and Box was the worst of the 3 extremes in my opinion. I can't stress how AWFUL Izo was. Man. To be honest, apart from maybe Gozu and Zebraman all his recent works have been shit. His next film is a damn Yokai remake, so I don't even have something to look forward too. I've seen close to 30 Miike films, and I honestly liked maybe 5-7 of them. Unfortunatly I've been tempted into watching MPD Psycho, so hopefully it lives up to it's hype. I don't know. The one thing I'll give him credit for is I don't always know what to expect. I just for some reason haven't been able to figure out the hype around him.

I'll tell you this. Put a video shop near white, 18-27 year old males and you'll make a killing. He seems to have that demographic locked down.

Anyhow, I know after this comment Chan is going to shit on me...lol

generique · July 2005

Pretty off topic and maybe I shouldn't be mentioning the following movie title at all, but talking about hard movies and Audition, I had to think about this utterly diturbing US film I saw some weeks ago. It is called Murder-Set-Pieces. It was on a horror festival and it was shown on the biggest screen around and I felt really bad after seeing it. I felt guilty and depressed. What this film did make clear to me though, was that the prudency of todays films is pretty much self imposed because apparently you can still pull things off like Murder-Set-Pieces. This, however doesn't say anything about the quality of this film. I do not recommend it at all although I don't really regret seeing it. Maybe this is old hat in the states...

the3rdstream · July 2005

Miike is overated, and maybe the most overated Japanese director today. IZO was a pile of shit and Box was the worst of the 3 extremes in my opinion. I can't stress how AWFUL Izo was. Man. To be honest, apart from maybe Gozu and Zebraman all his recent works have been shit. His next film is a damn Yokai remake, so I don't even have something to look forward too. I've seen close to 30 Miike films, and I honestly liked maybe 5-7 of them. Unfortunatly I've been tempted into watching MPD Psycho, so hopefully it lives up to it's hype. I don't know. The one thing I'll give him credit for is I don't always know what to expect. I just for some reason haven't been able to figure out the hype around him.

I'll tell you this. Put a video shop near white, 18-27 year old males and you'll make a killing. He seems to have that demographic locked down.

Anyhow, I know after this comment Chan is going to shit on me...lol

the first part of mpd psycho was ok, nothing great there are two more parts coming out and i have no idea when

i have not watched all miike's films but the ones i have seen i have really like, audition, ichi, visitor q, and gozu is the fucking bomb for real

Big_Chan · July 2005

Miike is overated, and maybe the most overated Japanese director today. IZO was a pile of shit and Box was the worst of the 3 extremes in my opinion. I can't stress how AWFUL Izo was. Man. To be honest, apart from maybe Gozu and Zebraman all his recent works have been shit. His next film is a damn Yokai remake, so I don't even have something to look forward too. I've seen close to 30 Miike films, and I honestly liked maybe 5-7 of them. Unfortunatly I've been tempted into watching MPD Psycho, so hopefully it lives up to it's hype. I don't know. The one thing I'll give him credit for is I don't always know what to expect. I just for some reason haven't been able to figure out the hype around him.

I'll tell you this. Put a video shop near white, 18-27 year old males and you'll make a killing. He seems to have that demographic locked down.

Anyhow, I know after this comment Chan is going to shit on me...lol

I agree with you MoSS!!!!! Dude is VERY hit or miss. A lot of his films seem extreme just to be extreme. I'm WAY more into the old school Japanese directors and actors. Give me a Kinji Fukasaku Yakuza film starring Bunta Sugawara and I'm happy all day!

alieNDN · July 2005

ok i think this is the thread to ask this in.

***spoiler alert for itchy the killer****

wtf happened in the end? was itchi in Kakihara's mind? who was hung on the tree at the end? me and my friend repeated it 3 times and couldn't tell...and it looks like in the end that ichi is walking away. i gots to know. any idea?

NachoManCandySandwich · July 2005

I would have to agree he is a bit over-rated. I've liked a few, but they're usually just fun or challenging, rarely mind-blowing (brain-melting, blood-shitting, etc.) But yes, you never know what's going to happen, and I like that a lot. It's interesting to hear him talk about how (like many artists dealing in shock) he isn't extreme for the sake of being extreme. He regards his more graphic depictions as the most honest-method of story telling. He claims other directors have simliar acts of violence in their movies, but don't confront the viewer with them, and instead choose to manipulate an emotional response out of it.

Generique, what was so nuts about Murder-set-piece? Maybe we can handle a few (appetite) spoilers.

Big Chan, speaking of oldschool directors, does anyone here know much about Terayama Shuuji? I'm trying to track down some of his stuff. The guy did Emperor Tomato Ketchup, and the amazingly titled Burn your books and hit the streets[/b], or something like that.

Very curuious.

And, Hey guys, I'm relatively new at posting here.

magnetic · July 2005

wtf happened in the end? was itchi in Kakihara's mind?

I dont think so it,because Ichi broke down crying and Kakihara couldn't stand that his perception of him was ruined so he killed himself.

who was hung on the tree at the end?

The dude that hypnotized Ichi.

and it looks like in the end that ichi is walking away

It could be the youthful representation of his spirit being free.

I might be totally wrong on all this though.

alieNDN · July 2005

i haven't seen it in a while, so i dont remember clearly, but my friend said when ichi killed Kakihara, he sliced Kakihara's head, but when u see Kakihara dead, there's no slicing on his head. which would mean ichi didn't exist? that was his theory anyways

magnetic · July 2005

i haven't seen it in a while, so i dont remember clearly, but my friend said when ichi killed Kakihara, he sliced Kakihara's head, but when u see Kakihara dead, there's no slicing on his head.

True,it's up to you to interpret the symbolism,but didn't he throw himself backwards off the building,i dont know why i think this happened.Shit you're gonna make me have to watch this movie again.

alieNDN · July 2005

that's what im saying, it probably was a suicide? he imagined ichi slicing him or whatever...cause prior to the scene u know who ichi's "controller" expands to this huge ass muscular mofo? i thought maybe that was a clue that he wasn't real and was just a figment of dude's twisted imagination

guy_alcindor · July 2005

Miike is overated, I've seen close to 30 Miike films, haven't been able to figure out the hype around him.

Whoa, you catch on slow, no?

But seriously, a lot of Japanese filmmakers are very hyped in the West because they simply present an aesthetic that is very stylistically opposed to many American films, and younger people seem really attracted to that. Not really a bad thing, when you consider how much utter crap Hollywood lampoons on folks...

magnetic · July 2005

ichi's "controller" expands to this huge ass muscular mofo? i thought maybe that was a clue that he wasn't real and was just a figment of dude's twisted imagination

At that point in the movie my mind was totally

ed i didn't know what to think anymore,The director probably was using it as a ploy to show more violence.

generique · July 2005

Generique, what was so nuts about Murder-set-piece? Maybe we can handle a few (appetite) spoilers.

This film is about a neo-nazi photographer who picks up hookers in Las Vegas to rape them and afterwards torture them. It's basically a repetition of this one scene in all possible permutations, rendering it to be akin to porn. Near the end the killer turns to slash children. There's not really an interesting angle to it. It makes you feel guilty because it's well made with hot girls in it. What's depressing is that it is made by people who genuinly think this is nice entertainment (which it might be to others). There's not really an angle to it and looks all slick. One good thing was the Goblin like soundtrack. It's very far from good-dirty-horror-fun and drains the blood out of your head in a bad way. Me and my friends planned on going out after the movie, but we all felt bad and went home and I think I watched Dumbo on video.

MoSS · July 2005

Miike is overated, I've seen close to 30 Miike films, haven't been able to figure out the hype around him.

Whoa, you catch on slow, no? But seriously, a lot of Japanese filmmakers are very hyped in the West because they simply present an aesthetic that is very stylistically opposed to many American films, and younger people seem really attracted to that. Not really a bad thing, when you consider how much utter crap Hollywood lampoons on folks...

I think you're right with that statement. We sell mostly Korean, Japanese and Chinese film, but I do mess with Russian, Polish, European etc... also. It's amazing how many teenagers come in asking for Ichi or Audition thinking they're about to throw themselves into the "cool" club. I usually laugh at the fact they are buying Ichi or Visitor Q and leaving something like Naked Island or Denen ni shisu. I sell more crap than I do good film actually, and for no reason other than the gore/violence percieved in Asian film. Azumi 2 has outsold Mysterious Skin, A Very Long Engagement, and Bin Jip. Explain that one.... Azumi doesn't even deserve to be used in the same sentence as those films.

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