261 days of Horror, Day 3: Pyrokinesis
Jan. 3rd, 2007 12:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
yendiPyrokinesis (aka Kurosufaia). 2000. Directed by Shusuke Kaneko. Written by Kota Yamada and Masahiro Yokotani. Released by Toho (but distributed by Tokyo Shock on DVD in the US).
As with many Asian horror movies, I had no idea (other than the obvious info conveyed by the title) what I was getting into with this one. The majority of today's trendy Asian horror films seem to combine beyond-the-grave vengeance of various sorts with deliberate time jumps that keep the plotline obscure until nearly the end. This works in some cases (A Tale of Two Sisters and Ju-On), but in others (Dark Water), it’s simply a way to cover up a weak plot.
If I'd done a little research on Pyrokinesis before watching it, I'd have known that wouldn't be the case here. Based on Crossfire, a crime novel by Miyuki Miyabe, this tale substitutes a well-told (but chronological) narrative for those tricks, combining some horror concepts (including some surprisingly gory and disturbing killings) with a police procedural. In fact, it's hard to overlook the fact that, with its plotline focusing on the titular firestarting power and rogue government agents attempting to harness that power, it's more than a tad reminiscent of a certain Stephen King novel and film. That said, although the concept begs for comparisons, the plots differ enough for Pyrokinesis to stand on its own.
In the introductory flashback, a little girl, Junko Aoki, is playing with a doll when a menacing teenager approaches her. The next thing we know, that boy is being buried (with no one aware of the fact that he was killed in self-defense), and the little girl has been told by her mother to never use her powers. So, naturally, she grows up to be an incredibly shy and repressed young woman, working as a mail clerk in a large office building. However, she soon catches the eye of Tada Kazuki, a nice guy who just recently transferred back to the main office. Cute sparks fly, and he invites her to the company’s dorm party*.
At the party, Junko meets Tada’s adorable little sister Yuki, a young teen who bonds easily with Junko. When it’s time for Yuki to go home, Junko accompanies her on the subway, and makes sure that Yuki gets in line for a cab before heading home. Yuki, however, gets inpatient with the wait for a cab, and decides to walk the rest of the way. A van pulls up, Yuki is pulled inside, and we’ve got our second funeral of the movie.
The police are able to track down Yuki’s killers (a group of teen boys who have been raping, killing, and creating snuff films for weeks), but due to technicalities and some gross miscarriages of justice, they go free. That’s when Junko reveals her powers to Tada and offers to help him get revenge.
This is the part where the movie gets complicated.
First, Junko discovers that she hyperfocuses when she uses her powers. Once she starts burning someone or something, it’s hard for her to stop. Second, Tada decides that he’s not sure he really wants this sort of revenge. Third, the cops (one of whom turns out to be the brother of the boy killed in the opening scene) are able to track down yet another burgeoning pyrokinetic. At the same time, Junko herself finds a boy with his own unique powers (the ability to touch someone and bend them to his will), who convinces her to continue to seek revenge.
Oh, and does she get her revenge. Junko comes across the gang with yet another hostage in tow, and when they attack her, she fights back. Attackers get burned in a blitz of surprisingly good special effects. The highlights include a man who’s burned from the inside, exploding from the heat and pressure, and another who is melted away when he attacks Junko.
And that’s when things get even more complicated.
You see, the one guy who gets away (and kills the hostage) is the son of the former police commissioner, who has now decided to form a rogue vigilante group (using the snuff films to both fund his project and to keep public fear of crime high). He’s also employing the telepath who can control minds, and the latter guy takes control of the second firestarter. This eventually spirals into the final confrontation at a local amusement park. We get explosions, betrayals, romance, and death in the climactic scene.
This is not, needless to say, a nice, neat little horror (or mystery, or romance) film. It melds a bunch of different genres surprisingly effectively, and refuses to dumb down any of the characters, all of whom are surprisingly complex. Likewise, the film doesn’t try to provide an easier answer on the morality of revenge, showing it as something that can simultaneously be noble and terrible for all involved.
Credit here goes to Miyabe’s original story, of course, but is also shared by director Shusuke Kaneko, best known as the man who re-invented the Gamera franchise in the mid-‘90s. Although we get good effects and some grand explosions here, he’s not afraid to spend time focusing on character development as well.
The cast, too, is top-notch. Kaori Momoi steals almost every scene as a determined police officer who balances classic cop intensity with a wry sense of humor. Her obsession with food is a nice (and understated) running joke throughout. Akiko Yada, as Junko, holds the movie together, bringing everything from vulnerability to rage to the part as needed. The rest of the cast is equally strong, making the complex characters utterly believable, no matter how extreme the situation in which they are placed.
Fans who want nothing but gore and explosions might be disappointed here, but anyone looking for a engrossing, genre-hopping movie with well-developed characters and an engaging storyline will want to check this one out. Highly recommended.
* I’m assuming that big companies maintaining dorms for their workers is the norm in Japan, or at least common enough for this not to be out of the ordinary.
As with many Asian horror movies, I had no idea (other than the obvious info conveyed by the title) what I was getting into with this one. The majority of today's trendy Asian horror films seem to combine beyond-the-grave vengeance of various sorts with deliberate time jumps that keep the plotline obscure until nearly the end. This works in some cases (A Tale of Two Sisters and Ju-On), but in others (Dark Water), it’s simply a way to cover up a weak plot.
If I'd done a little research on Pyrokinesis before watching it, I'd have known that wouldn't be the case here. Based on Crossfire, a crime novel by Miyuki Miyabe, this tale substitutes a well-told (but chronological) narrative for those tricks, combining some horror concepts (including some surprisingly gory and disturbing killings) with a police procedural. In fact, it's hard to overlook the fact that, with its plotline focusing on the titular firestarting power and rogue government agents attempting to harness that power, it's more than a tad reminiscent of a certain Stephen King novel and film. That said, although the concept begs for comparisons, the plots differ enough for Pyrokinesis to stand on its own.
In the introductory flashback, a little girl, Junko Aoki, is playing with a doll when a menacing teenager approaches her. The next thing we know, that boy is being buried (with no one aware of the fact that he was killed in self-defense), and the little girl has been told by her mother to never use her powers. So, naturally, she grows up to be an incredibly shy and repressed young woman, working as a mail clerk in a large office building. However, she soon catches the eye of Tada Kazuki, a nice guy who just recently transferred back to the main office. Cute sparks fly, and he invites her to the company’s dorm party*.
At the party, Junko meets Tada’s adorable little sister Yuki, a young teen who bonds easily with Junko. When it’s time for Yuki to go home, Junko accompanies her on the subway, and makes sure that Yuki gets in line for a cab before heading home. Yuki, however, gets inpatient with the wait for a cab, and decides to walk the rest of the way. A van pulls up, Yuki is pulled inside, and we’ve got our second funeral of the movie.
The police are able to track down Yuki’s killers (a group of teen boys who have been raping, killing, and creating snuff films for weeks), but due to technicalities and some gross miscarriages of justice, they go free. That’s when Junko reveals her powers to Tada and offers to help him get revenge.
This is the part where the movie gets complicated.
First, Junko discovers that she hyperfocuses when she uses her powers. Once she starts burning someone or something, it’s hard for her to stop. Second, Tada decides that he’s not sure he really wants this sort of revenge. Third, the cops (one of whom turns out to be the brother of the boy killed in the opening scene) are able to track down yet another burgeoning pyrokinetic. At the same time, Junko herself finds a boy with his own unique powers (the ability to touch someone and bend them to his will), who convinces her to continue to seek revenge.
Oh, and does she get her revenge. Junko comes across the gang with yet another hostage in tow, and when they attack her, she fights back. Attackers get burned in a blitz of surprisingly good special effects. The highlights include a man who’s burned from the inside, exploding from the heat and pressure, and another who is melted away when he attacks Junko.
And that’s when things get even more complicated.
You see, the one guy who gets away (and kills the hostage) is the son of the former police commissioner, who has now decided to form a rogue vigilante group (using the snuff films to both fund his project and to keep public fear of crime high). He’s also employing the telepath who can control minds, and the latter guy takes control of the second firestarter. This eventually spirals into the final confrontation at a local amusement park. We get explosions, betrayals, romance, and death in the climactic scene.
This is not, needless to say, a nice, neat little horror (or mystery, or romance) film. It melds a bunch of different genres surprisingly effectively, and refuses to dumb down any of the characters, all of whom are surprisingly complex. Likewise, the film doesn’t try to provide an easier answer on the morality of revenge, showing it as something that can simultaneously be noble and terrible for all involved.
Credit here goes to Miyabe’s original story, of course, but is also shared by director Shusuke Kaneko, best known as the man who re-invented the Gamera franchise in the mid-‘90s. Although we get good effects and some grand explosions here, he’s not afraid to spend time focusing on character development as well.
The cast, too, is top-notch. Kaori Momoi steals almost every scene as a determined police officer who balances classic cop intensity with a wry sense of humor. Her obsession with food is a nice (and understated) running joke throughout. Akiko Yada, as Junko, holds the movie together, bringing everything from vulnerability to rage to the part as needed. The rest of the cast is equally strong, making the complex characters utterly believable, no matter how extreme the situation in which they are placed.
Fans who want nothing but gore and explosions might be disappointed here, but anyone looking for a engrossing, genre-hopping movie with well-developed characters and an engaging storyline will want to check this one out. Highly recommended.
* I’m assuming that big companies maintaining dorms for their workers is the norm in Japan, or at least common enough for this not to be out of the ordinary.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-03 07:12 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-03 07:14 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-03 08:28 pm (UTC)And yes, some company's have dorms for workers. Space is a premium in Tokyo so there's a few options that are available instead of going home during the week (including tube hotels).
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-07 09:12 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-03-15 06:10 pm (UTC)