People who read my writings (all three of you) will recall that I posted a note a few weeks back about how Hollywood horror and action movies are extremely hung up on making their villains emo and sympathetic, and simply cannot accept that some people are just EVIL anymore. And you know what? This wouldn't be a problem if the manner in which American filmmakers tried to accomplish this wasn't so damned trite and contrived, and hit you over the head with the "FEEL SORRY FOR THIS PERSON" message."Audition," a 1999 masterpiece of kickass J-horror, is a movie that pulls off a feat that hadn't been done this well since the original "Psycho" - even though we know that Asami Yamazaki is a monster, and we see her commit stunningly brutal acts of violence, we grow to care about and relate to the character in a genuine, real way just like we did with Norman Bates, and not in the lazy "this person is only killing assholes" way of Rob Zombie's "Halloween" or Marcus Nispel's "Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Hey, everyone just wants to be loved, after all.
The movie tells the story of Aoyoma (fantastic character actor Ryo Ishibashi), a middle-aged widower who hasn't been able to move on from his wife's death eight years ago. After much prodding from his teenage son, Aoyoma agrees to start dating again, and soon a film producer friend has come up with a plan for him - hold a phony film audition to find the "professional, artistic" girl that Aoyoma wants.
Much of the film's middle chapters are made up of a courtship between Aoyoma and the girl he has chosen - a beautiful, shy, and smart ballerina named Asami (Eihi Shiina). The love story in "Audition" is stunningly well done, and director Takashi Miike does a fantastic job framing his two central characters and making both sympathetic. But just under the surface of the fluffy love story of "Audition" is a gut-wrenching sense of dread, and we are periodically given reminders that not all may be right with Asami. One scene in particular, with Asami sitting perfectly still for an undetermined amount of time alone in her apartment simply waiting for her phone to ring is profoundly disturbing.
I've stated this before about other movies, but I'll say it again; some people say that this film drags a bit, but to them, I say that this is a little something called "building steam" that sadly not many writers or directors are interested in doing anymore. It seems that most horror (and action, for that matter) films now are content to jump from inception of the idea to the payoff with really nothing in between. "Audition" is not a film for fans of the Eli Roth or "Saw"/"Hostel"/torture porn school of horror. The entire film is a buildup to the final twenty minutes, which may be the single most brutal, shockingly graphic and sickening series of revelations in the annals of film. It is living proof that horror films are more vital, important pieces of literary cinema than any of the supposed "great works of art" that the Academy trots out every year.
It is also a very artistic film, with excellent dichotamies, use of flashbacks, and stunning camera work. But the thing that surprised me the MOST about "Audition" when I first saw it is just how EMOTIONAL the movie is...particularly as it relates to the character of Asami. As stated above, a lesser film would attempt to make the character sympathetic merely by making the victim characters dislikable, and thus, the audience would be required to root for her by default. But "Audition" takes a much more ambitious path; this movie tears your heart out while churning your stomach with its incredibly harrowing final quarter.
My favorite scene in the entire movie occurs just before the movie's violent climax; as Aoyoma realizes in horror what is about to happen to him, the true nature of the girl that he is in love with is portrayed to him through a cavalcade of flashbacks. This sequence begins with an incredibly stirring scene with Aoyoma and Asami sitting in a restaurant, and Asami telling Aoyoma her familial and life story. While we the audience know by this point that not all is right with this character, and this scene does not apologize for her upcoming actions, it incredibly makes us understand them...on some base level, we are all alone, just like Asami. Without exaggeration, the scene comes close to eliciting tears from yours truly every time I see it. So simply staged, yet effective!
Since this movie is very widely seen and highly praised by critics and audiences alike, inevitably the topic of a possible remake comes up. Shockingly, there hasn't been much talk in Hollywood's inner circle about one; in fact, the aura about this movie seems to be built up so well that its status is very similar to the original "Jaws." "Audition" might enjoy possible untouchable status, and I for one am very thankful for that. Not because I don't think that this story could be made entertaining again, because I actually do think that it could IF they found the right actors for the leads and didn't settle for a couple lame flavors of the month, and if the director paid just as much attention to building up the characters as building up the blood and guts.
However, if this movie were remade, I wouldn't see that scenario happening; I could see a movie going the typical recent horror route of attempting to over-explain every single aspect of their Asami character's back story to the point where all of the mystique, drama, and emotion was robbed out of the situation, and I could also see a significant portion of this movie's 1+ hour build being stripped away for about five more murder scenes. Nonetheless, I PRAY that this is a movie that never has to suffer the stain of a U.S. remake, because it's PERFECT the way it is.
Takashi Miike is a name that is well-known to fans of Japanese horror (and Asian cinema in general), as he has created a pretty well-known body of work over his two decades-long career. "Ichi the Killer," the "Dead or Alive" trilogy and "Gozu" are all noteworthy films from Miike; nonetheless, this still stands as his masterpiece. It's a textbook example of the slow burn with excellent acting, directing and living, breathing, believable characters that pull you right into the unfolding web on the screen. And while much of "Audition" is made up of a very engaging love story, make no mistake; this IS a horror film, and when this movie's horror finally hits, it will knock the hell out of you.
No comments:
Post a Comment