Did we all miss a golden age of Japanese cinema? No, I’m not talking Akira Kurosawa, although he is relevant in any discussion of Japanese film. I’m talking about this odd cross-section of movies around the turn of the century in which –while dominating no other genre- Japan seemed to be producing the best animated films (thanks to Miyazaki) and the best horrors. Audition is one of the latter and as a horror, it’s much less “monster” and much more “Saw” ifyouknowwhatImean.
All he wanted was a new wife. Is that too much to ask? Shigeharu Aoyama (Ryo Ishibashi) has been a widower for about a decade. It was a decade in which he learned to fish, which is just as good as having a wife according to redneck t-shirts. For some reason, Shaigeharu wasn’t getting the big mouth bass lovin’ he coveted, and so over beers he complains to his movie producer friend (Jen Kunimura). This is Japanese man-style complaining, btw, which amounts to little more than a slight frown and a series of barely perceptible gestures.
Yoshikawa (Kunimura) gets himself a Grinch-y idea if there ever was one – why not advertise a (fake) film and hold an Audition for the role of Shaigeharu’s wife? If you’ve ever seen Jerry Maguire, I believe said tactic is known in the business as “shoplifting the pootie.” The two men, however, justify: Hey, what’s the harm? Collect some headshots … make some calls … hold some interviews … I mean, aside from this being a loathsome thing to do – which the film never addresses while it’s going on – who really gets hurt here? Every girl thinks she has a shot at being a movie star and an Audition is one step closer to a dream, no?
Yeah, the film sees through my pathetic justification.
Among those interviewed is Asami Yamazaki (Eihi Shiina) a shy former dancer who offered background to a written interview question along something on the order of, “having to quit dancing was the equivalent of death.” Where others might see alarm bells in her hint at suicidal behavior, Shigeharu felt a different kind of alarm, one stemming from his loins. Yoshikawa urges caution because the girl has no background, but you can’t really push reason between a man and his loins.
Well, I
shan’t spoil such a horrible indulgence. Suffice to say, Asami might be concealing a skeleton or two. The film eventually gets so dark that most of Act III is presented in dream form to give the audience an out, “that didn’t really happen, did it? DID IT?! PLEASE TELL ME THAT CAN’T HAPPEN!?!!”
For Me, there’s something so much more chilling about semi-realistic horror. It’s very likely I’ll never meet a real-life Hannibal Lecter or Jigsaw in my lifetime, but I could easily run afoul of somebody who’s just inner crazy; I’m pretty sure I encounter one of those most every day without knowing whom. As for Audition, it is an unsettling film. It moves very slowly… almost certainly so that when it’s jarring, you’ll never forget it. For Audition to be a great horror, I think I’d have to love at least one of the characters and I did not. Audition, however, is as chilling and disturbing as most any film you’ll ever see. I respect it on that count.
“Oh, don’t you be such a grouch
You wanted some fun! Now don’t slouch
And neither don’t cringe
While I fill this syringe
And then we’ll make magic on the couch!”
Rated R, 115 Minutes
Director: Takashi Miike
Writer: Daisuke Tengan
Genre: Movies that keep you up at night
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: Folks with an overdeveloped notion of vengeance
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: The kind of men who fear mail order brides specifically because “the Russian Mob”
