Hana and Alice

I became interested in Shunji Iwai when I saw his performance in Hideaki Anno's Shiki-jitsu (2000) and I became a fan of his when I saw his masterpiece, All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001). I have seen a few of his films by now and mostly he has made good films, but eventually I was expecting an exception to appear. And that exception is Hana and Alice (2004): a story of two high school girls who fight over a boy with whom both of them have fallen in love.

The premise of the film is simple, but with Iwai at the helm one would expect a refreshing take on the worn-out story. He does try something new with the idea, but the problem lies with its execution. Iwai's unconventional narrative confuses the viewer's emotions too much and the film comes off as too quirky for its own sake. You don't care for any of the characters who seem way too flat and peculiar. This would be OK if it was the film's intention, but when it is not what the film aims at, it makes the film incredibly uneven. The problem becomes worse and worse as the film goes on. Especially the film's big "emotional climax" is very dry and stretched because it had no impact on me. What is even worse that the climax seems to come out of the blue and doesn't really fit into the rest of the film.

Iwai's form is as fresh as it is usually. Beautiful imagery and comfy pacing make the film worthwhile although there are moments when the form is almost as unfocused as the content itself. Some of the performances also rubbed me the wrong way. I don't know if that was only because the characters were so awful or if the tone was simply ruined, but even two of the main trio left me unsatisfied. The only one of the three who convinced was Yu Aoi (unsurprisingly, she was great in All About Lily Chou-Chou as well).

Even though Hana and Alice manages to deliver a barely decent entirety in the end, it is by far the worst film Shunji Iwai has made so far. I hope he does not stumble similarly in future.

Score: 5 out of 10

All About Lily Chou-Chou

If you have read my blog ever since I began, you'll surely remember my incoherent and enthusiastic review of Shunji Iwai's All About Lily Chou-Chou back in November. Even though I've spent probably more than 10 hours watching clips of this film afterwards, I haven't completely rewatched it until now. This time I intend to create a more sensible and readable review because the film is one of my favorites of all time.

Essentially the film is about a teenaged boy's life changing as he enters high school. The pressure, dreams, hopes and fears of adolescence are portrayed tangibly. The boy's alienation and implied coming-of-age are thoroughly explored as he is ripped apart from what he cares about. What is even "worse" for him is that he is like Neon Genesis Evangelion's Shinji - an extremely introverted and helpless kid facing problems too huge for him to grasp.

The boy attempts to find solace in the music of a Björk-like artist by discussing about his passion for her music on the Internet. That way the film also observes delusional fans and Internet behaviour. It is surprising how the film isn't judgmental about it even though it is implied to be dubious.

The growing distance between teenagers and adults is obvious throughout the film. The teachers remain distant in an exaggerated school world where violence and even prostitution exist. The boy's home is even more distant to him: in a single shot it is established that his mother has remarried to a weird guy with another problematic kid. His family doesn't really offer him shelter from anything - even his relationship with his mother is awfully strained.

Iwai's narrative is very elliptical and fragmented. It jumps back and forth in time, but it never does that without a proper transition. The signals for transition are mostly subtle - and that's why the film requires patience from the viewer. The unconventional narrative strikes deep into how it feels like to be an emotionally stressed teenager today.

Iwai's form is intriguing yet a bit challenging. Mostly handheld camerawork and internet messages flashing on the screen might be a bit hard to get used to - luckily the opening of the film makes the viewer ready for the rest of the film. Even though the film was shot with digital cameras, it is one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen - the compositions and the colors are gorgeous. The haunting musical score featuring songs of a fictional musician is haunting: especially Salyu's vocals linger on one's mind for hours after the credits.

All About Lily Chou-Chou is a film I completely and utterly love because it is a complex portrayal of modern youth that hits me harder than most of other films put together.

Score: 10 out of 10

The Kon Ichikawa Story

Shunji Iwai's documentary The Kon Ichikawa Story (2006) chronicles the life of the legendary Japanese director, Kon Ichikawa (the director of films like Fires on the Plain (1959) and Tokyo Olympaid (1965)). It creates a warm and poignant portrayal of the director and his wife who often worked together.

The intriguing aspect of this documentary is how it is constructed. Most of the information is shared via white text on black backgrounds without voice-over narration. There are photos which have oddly been manipulated to move on some occasions (you have to see the film to understand what I mean). There are also clips of Ichikawa's films used once in a while as examples. The documentary ends with a clip of Kon Ichikawa working on his last film in 2006.

Iwai's appreciation for the director becomes more and more apparent as the documentary goes on. It was a great thing to shoot a documentary like this while Ichikawa was alive - he died 2 years after this documentary was finished.

Score: 7 out of 10

April Story

Shunji Iwai's April Story (1998) is a short but delightful film of a girl entering university in Tokyo. Initially the film seems to tackle with questions related to independence, but it eventually turns into a love story. The first half of the film seems a bit unfocused, but that is only for the better: it sets the tone for the rest of the story and provides the necessary background. The later half of the film is incredibly told. While the content might not be anything new or deep, it's enough to satisfy during the short running time of the film (67 minutes).

Iwai's form is exceptionally breathtaking: beautiful lighting, pleasant handheld camerawork, charming pacing and a poignant musical score. A lot of instrumental music is used throughout the film, but it never becomes too intrusive.

Appreciation of Iwai's April Story is more about how the film is told instead of what is told. Iwai's narrative and form are clearly the pros of the film. Spending an hour with this film will certainly not go to waste.

Score: 8 out of 10

All About Lily Chou-Chou

Shunji Iwai's All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001) took me by surprised and twisted my heart and brain. 18 hours has passed since I watched the film, but it still has a strong impact on me: I'm bewildered, crazy and touched. To reflect my reaction to the film, my review will be executed in a peculiar way: I take quotes from other reviews and comment on them.

”If your taste runs to "difficult" films you absolutely can't miss it.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

The difference in reactions to All About Lily Chou-Chou can be mostly reduced to "Your mileage may vary." The film is certainly not easy to get into because it has such a peculiar narrative and it seems there is nothing that essentially ties the film into one solid entirety. I, on the other hand, fell in love with it on this aspect.

”"All About Lily Chou-Chou" is arguably too ambitious, too all-encompassing and too concerned with flouting narrative convention for its own good. Then again, some of the same criticisms could apply to François Truffaut's "The 400 Blows," a movie that bears more than a passing similarity to this one.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

The problem I had at first was that as much as I could praise the film, I could criticize it for the very same things. Once my mind had settled down a bit (it hasnt settled completely yet), I felt my criticism felt weaker and weaker so I began to admire the film more gradually. Partly because it had such a strong effect on me, only comparable to my reaction to films like Yi Yi and End of Evangelion. O'Hehir makes a reasonable comparison to Truffaut's The 400 Blows because All About Lily Chou-Chou seems to be criticized for the same reasons The 400 Blows is praised.

”"All About Lily Chou-Chou" is mainly the story of Yuichi (Hayato Ichihara), a moody, near-silent teenage boy who's obsessed with a pop singer named, yep, Lily Chou-Chou. Beyond that, though, things get murky.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

This is as good as it gets when you attempt to make a plot introduction for the film. The film's content becomes so wide that it is hard to explain it all without writing walls of text and spoiling the film too much.

”Iwai's portrait of Japanese high-school life is dense with compelling detail. In between his sessions in an online chat-room devoted to Lily -- rendered as a series of explosive intertitles that interrupt and sometimes overlay the action -- Yuichi must navigate a landscape of warring bullies and gangs, sadistic and seductive packs of girls and various grades of clueless, harried adults.” - Andrew O'Hehir - Salon.com

The film dives deep into the lives of high-school students. One of the things that resonated within me was the portrayal of Internet discussion and disillusioned fanbase. The anonymity is conforming for the teens because it allows them to get away from the social pressure caused by the school, family and friends. The things these crazy fans write during the film are not far from what is written on most of the forums I've been to. Fans go to absurd levels in praising what they love, by bringing up weird "facts", writing colorful yet pretentious walls of text and defending the honor of their precious idol or masterpiece. I have been (and still am to a certain degree) guilty of this act because it becomes quite natural once you spend enough time on the Internet. The problems of the teenagers in the film explode in the form of criminal and even sexually grim activities. The cluelessness (is that even a word?) of the adults reflects, in my humble opinion, the way the teenagers mostly see adults as, especially parents and teachers. They can be kind or dominating, but "none of them understands" how the children feel. Through their eyes, there is a gaping hole between their world and the parents' world.

”If Yuichi is pretty much the classic wounded adolescent of world cinema, transposed to the age of chat rooms and digital video, that doesn't stop us from pining for a time when he will be less awkward and his life a little easier.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

At first I despised Yuichi because I wanted to get him over his own problems and finally do SOMETHING. As the film went further I realised I was only frustrated because he faces a lot of problems I have, and I realised how honestly Iwai portrays this aspect. It doesnt point fingers at anyone yet it is a true and deep look at these psychological problems. In a way, Yuichi reminds me of Hideaki Anno's Neon Genesis Evangelion's Shinji because my initial (and later) reaction was similar to him. That might have been an unintentional parallel on Iwai's part, but he has admitted that Anno's Love & Pop influenced him a lot. You can certainly spot that all the way from the subject (and how it is handled) to the peculiar form.

”If the narrative progress of Iwai's film is sometimes baffling, what keeps you watching are his lustrous images and the complexity of his portrayal of middle-class Japan in decline.” - Andrew O'Hehir - Salon.com

The narrative certainly CAN be baffling, but I'm sure no one will stop watching the film. Luckily there are other qualities that can be more easily called redeeming than the narrative. More about the form later.

”Scenes don't always occur in chronological order, and some remain entirely mysterious.” - Andrew O'Hehir - Salon.com

You might be skeptical if this sort of ambiguity fits to the subject, but it strengthens the film. The film's narrative doesnt try to force every detail down the viewers' throats, but certainly leaves enough clues for clear interpretation. The amount of details may confuse you on the initial viewing and you might need to rewatch the film later.

”While this has the making of melodrama, the filmmaker cuts against this natural grain, producing a work that's more interested in asking questions than in answering them.” - David Ehrenstein, New Times

This isnt completely true, but can be attributed to the amgiguosity.

”I suppose "All About Lily Chou-Chou" is at its heart making the oldest possible complaint about modern culture: that as it purports to bring people together it actually keeps them separate.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

The film might not make an impressive statement of this complaint in general, but it is adequate enough when you take the subject into consideration.

”Iwai isn't interested in Lily herself, who never appears in the film (and may not even be real); Lily and her pseudo-mystical domain, "the Ether," seem to symbolize a lost tranquility that may be the past or the future but definitely isn't the here and now.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

This is something the viewer should have in mind before watching the film. The title is, in a way, misleading because it isnt really about Lily Chou-Chou itself. Every bit of information about her comes through her fans and we can never be sure how correct this information is. It is much more reasonable and comfortable to see her as a metaphor.

Without a direct quote, I would like to mention a brilliant scene. Yuichi walks a girl home, but the tension in the girl and in the relationship explodes completely while they are walking. What happens during the explosion is stunning and it feels so right. The end of the scene is an example of the awkward lack of connection between the characters even though both of them desparately want it. It is a bittersweet yet beautiful moment.

”A film that perfectly distills the relationship between pop music and teens searching for identity.” - Pam Grady, Reel.com

Even though it would be too simple to say that the film is about teens searching for identity, but the important of culture, especially pop music, is handled better than I recall in any other film I've seen. There is this strong need to escape the reality by any means and a lot of adolescents rely on music. Salyu's wonderful music is used as the music of the mysterious Lily Chou-Chou. These songs set the mood perfectly and reflect the teenage angst in a bittersweet way.

”Much of All About Lily Chou-Chou is mesmerizing: some of its plaintiveness could make you weep.” - Elvis Mitchell, New York Times

While the film isnt strictly melancholic, it certainly affects you in that way as well. There was one certain moment that made me weep a little because it was such a crushing moment for one of the characters. Yet again, I would like to compare the film to Yi Yi to which I had similar reactions.

”This movie is maddening. It conveys a simple message in a visual style that is willfully overwrought.” - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

This Ebert quote is simply something I have to disagree with. "A simple message"? Huh? Visual style that is willfull overwrought? Your mileage may vary.

”Writer-director Shunji Iwai is no kid (he's 39), but his movie has a youthful restlessness, an almost compulsive daring.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

Iwai's form is intriguing and uneasy - as it should be for this sort of content. The next quote puts it better than I ever could:

”Once you get into its rhythm ... the movie becomes a heady experience.” - Jonathan Curiel, San Fransisco Chronicle

Not only the narrative might be disorienting, but the editing is certainly peculiar. Anno's influence can be seen here, but Iwai doesnt simply do what Anno would, but takes the whole form even beyond that. It is a delicious experience.

”Iwai is almost certainly going digital by choice; he begins and ends the film with images of Yuichi against a field of sizzling-green grass, an electric hue perhaps only attainable in this format.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

Now that I have seen the film, I claim it wouldnt be the same if it was shot on film. The digital footage is charming and extremely beautiful, as describe in the following quote:

”Perhaps no greater example yet exists of the beauty achievable when one is a master of the digital aesthetic.” - Jeremy Heilman, MovieMartyrs.com

All About Lily Chou-Chou is the best example of how you can achieve a lot by digital cameras, and also why they should be used more frequently.

”Then there's a long sideways journey in the middle, when the film temporarily becomes a homemade video of an Okinawa vacation that ends with a near-drowning while the camera sloshes around haphazardly in the surf.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

I understand why Iwai executed this portion of the film in the way he did, but it wasnt easy to accept at first. There are a few points during this section that made me a little skeptical. I would consider this a minor flaw at worst.

”Ichihara is a handsome, slight kid who can simultaneously convey curiosity and sullenness.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

Ichihara (Yuichi's, the main characters', actor) performed extremely well. I even didnt think of the performances before reading about the film elsewhere. The whole cast deserves appreciation, especially Ichihara and Ayumi Ito. Their performances were hard-hitting.

I'm finally coming to a conclusion, and at first I'll use a bunch of quotes:

”I loved "All About Lily Chou-Chou" despite its problems, or at least I greatly admired its crystalline, high-definition video look, its explosive feel, its wealth of ideas, its willingness to go anywhere and do anything.” - Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

”Confusion is one of my least favourite emotions, especially when I have to put up with 146 minutes of it.” - Ian Waldron-Mantgani, UK Critic

”It's a uniquely lonely film, and one of the year's most memorable.” - Michael Atkinson, Village Voice

”I'm not sure All About Lily Chou-Chou made sense in my head, but it made sense in my heart.” - Chris Hewitt, St. Paul Pioneer Press

Andrew O'Hehir's covers most of the reason why I'm willing to forget any possible flaws of the film, and add to that the fact how it hit home for me: I identify a lot of the characters' problems in myself although I have no experience of youth criminals or teenage prostitution. Ian Waldron-Mantgani's bewildering statement is funny in an unintentional way. The film seems to have breached his security and shaken him up, and he feels offended by that. I usually feel vice versa. What I love about Michael Atkinson's quote is his description of the film: "uniquely lonely". Chris Hewitt's words, on the other hand, are the ones I had in my mind just after I had seen the film. Back then I wasnt sure if I had seen one of the best films ever, or only a decent film.

As the last quote, I would like to use something Andrew O'Hehir wrote:

”Somehow it works.”

Even though he uses it only about the digital aesthetic, I erupted in laughter after reading that line. It felt so spot-on about my thoughts on the film in general.

Score: (yet another) 10 out of 10