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Quickie Review - Marebito

While the film is dubbed a Japanese horror film, I found this to be much more of a cerebral ride than one of fright.  The film was directed by Takashi Shimuzu of The Grudge fame, so it does have a horror appeal, but it's really a man's journey into psychosis.  It's important to realize that the film is a complete homage to the writer Richard Shaver's A Warning to Future Man.  Shaver was a man who believed there were a ancient subterranean creatures called Deros who spied on us using a special device.  He also believe they had been left there by their parents and had devolved from their more human like state.

In the film, we see a camera man, played by Shinya Tsukamoto who has filmed a man committing suicide (by jamming a knife into his eye) and he becomes consumed with understanding the fear that this man felt.  This takes him into the Tokyo underground where he finds a world that is unknown to those who walk above.  He comes across a girl who is naked and bound and tries to help her.  He calls the girl F (played by the gorgeous Tomomi Miyashita) and tries to humanize her.  He quickly realizes she can't be changed and also realizes she only drinks blood.  This is where his psychosis becomes stronger and he does what he can to satiate her.  As his life spins out of control we see more and more odd things and he becomes obsessed. In the end, we're led to believe he has fulfilled his desire to come face to face with absolute terror.

The film has a bit of a cult following and is revered for having been shot in only eight days, but I feel this is part of the problem.  There is a severe lack of cohesiveness throughout and there are entire scenes that feel like they've been added simply to confuse the viewer.  It is important to watch for the little signs throughout that let us know what is real and what is not.  While I couldn't find any definitive explanations on the film, it is my feeling that almost everything within the film where he is filming is part of his breakdown.  The scenes where he doesn't have a camera are real and they are few and far between.  Definitely worth a look if only for the complexity of this man's unravelling.

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