Matt Cooper Films

Three-foot Ball & Souls (2017) by Yoshio Kato

Four individuals learn about one another’s lives when they gather to commit joint suicide. Happa (Kanji Tsuda) has created a 3-foot sphere packed with fireworks with which to carry out their plans. He is joined in a small shed by a young man named Baby Doll (Minehiro Kinomoto), each of them having chosen an alias on the online forum where they met. The two men are subsequently joined by Tsubasa (Shinobu Tsuji), and finally by high-schooler Tsukiko (Honoka Murakami). However, Tsukiko’s arrival makes the others uneasy, feeling she is too young to commit suicide. They attempt to talk her out of it. Through their conversations with each other we learn what led them to this point.

There is a major twist in this film that completely changes both the tone, and perhaps even the genre. If you want to avoid spoilers, then I suggest you check out the film before reading further. The majority of the story is focussed on these four individuals in a single location, relying on an excellent script with everything from black comedy to heart-wrenchingly emotional moments. By treating the subject of suicide somewhat lightly, the more emotional scenes pack more of a punch, the darkness of their individual struggles made more poignant by the lighthearted banter they engage in. The characterisation of the four protagonists is well-done, fleshing out particular archetypes through solid writing an excellent performances. Happa is a typical goofy father, making inappropriate jokes and trying to keep people’s spirits up. Baby Doll/Takamura is a downtrodden, nervous, young man, suffering work-related stress. Tsubasa’s story is perhaps one of the most tragic, and Honoko Murakami brings real passion to the role of Tsukiko’s shy schoolgirl dealing with bullying. As mentioned previously, the film begins as a low-key drama, simple setting, small cast, but following the first explosion, when the characters are transported back to relive the same events over, it strays into science-fiction. It is an interesting way of having the characters truly battle with the morality or necessity of suicide, in a way that would not be possible if they simply succeeded in their first attempt.

The subject of suicide is never an easy one. The film allows us to see some of the reasons why people are driven to suicide and to sympathise with the protagonists. Through seeing things from the perspective of others they are able to better understand their situation and discover a different path. The final message, that people can solve issues such as anxiety and depression through talking out their problems, may seem quaint, but is nevertheless important. A unique film with a determined focus on its theme and characters, that delivers a number of surprises and some excellent performances.

Matt Cooper Films

Nakedness which Wants to Die Too Much (2012)

Michiru is a high-school boy who is bullied mercilessly by his classmates. The film opens with him looking over the body of his dear recently deceased grandmother. He explains that he realized at an early age that everyone will one day return to being an empty vessel. This morbid fascination with death leads him to create a cardboard coffin to sleep in. Michiru also plays a “suicide game” in which he pretends to slash his wrists, using a taped on packet of red paint for a sense of authenticity. Those suffering from depression will relate to the character who is suicidal but afraid of actually going through with it, stuck in a miserable purgatory. Michiru’s life changes when he meets Sayaka, a girl who is not put off by his queer tendencies, and the two form a strong platonic friendship. However, Sayaka also has a secret life, one that threatens to destroy their relationship.

Director Hidenobu Abera shows a burgeoning talent with this film. A lack of polish is made up for by his style and inventiveness. The story, written by Abera, is unique in its particulars although dealing with familiar themes such as depression, bullying and sex work. Both the main actors do a decent job with what are pretty complex characters. Kawamura Kosho is awkward and retiring as Michiru, while Natsumi Imanaka’s Sayaka is fun, though with a dark past always just beneath the surface. The film has some great music accompanying it, including modern pop songs. “Nakedness which Wants to Die Too Much” is a short film, though a tough watch. It treads a fine line between tragedy and black comedy, constantly engaging with two intriguing lead characters and an interesting premise.

The film deals with the problem of bullying in a particularly harrowing way. What Michiru experiences, both psychologically and physically, is difficult to watch. His depression and obsession with suicide are understandable in this context. He is utterly helpless, being too weak to fight back, and this makes for a difficult watch. The film also touches on child abuse, prostitution and isolation. In the end the message is one of hope, that bonds of friendship can be formed in the darkest times and these can help people get through whatever they are facing.

Matt Cooper Films

Bullet Ballet (1998)

Goda arrives home from after-work drinks to find his girlfriend of 10 years has shot herself. The initial shock soon gives way to curiosity as he tries to uncover where she got the gun from. His search for understanding, both the mystery of the origin of the weapon, and the more ineffable reasons for her committing suicide. Goda is soon scouring gun enthusiast forums and makes his own firearm. He wanders through the dark underbelly of the city, far removed from his daily life at an advertising agency. His journey brings him into contact with Chisato, a member of a street gang who is engaged in her own struggle with self destruction.

Shinya Tsukamoto (Tetsuo) writes, directs and stars in “Bullet Ballet”. The film is a clear development of his style from his earlier Tetsuo films, blending arthouse visuals with the brutality of an exploitation film. Shot on 16mm Black and White, with frenetic cuts, this film has more narrative structure and the editing is reigned in a little which helps make the film more comprehensible. Use of cuts to black, strobe lighting, and more can make for uncomfortable viewing, but these techniques are used sparingly and are rarely gratuitous. There are some stand-out examples of the power of film, in the rapid cuts between gunshots and scenes of war and destruction, that help the viewer sense the terrible power of this weapon. When a gun is aimed at a character in the film you are in no doubt about what the potential consequences would be. The film uses some fantastic locations, dark alleyways and abandoned buildings, and they are shot and directed to their best effect. Dripping water, the play of light and shadows, and the sense of a broken vision of what the city should be all create the perfect backdrop to the drama. The grime and decay is almost palpable through the screen. Tsukamoto, who also plays the lead character, is good as Goda, capturing the various emotions that Goda is going through: anger, sadness, fear. Kirina Mano gives a great performance as Chisato, tough with an underlying fragility. Many of the characters are ambiguous in nature and the film is far from a simple good versus evil tale; instead it feels like it is trying to unravel the morality of an incomprehensibly complex system that is largely dictated by uncontrollable feelings. The supporting cast all do a good job, the gang members are suitably menacing, almost the human embodiment of the dark city streets they inhabit.

Tsukamoto weaves a number of themes and ideas through the simple narrative creating a work that really wants to say something about the problems it addresses. For example, Goda’s obsession with the gun become a more general rumination on the problem of violence in society. Likewise, in attempting to work through his anger and upset at his girlfriend’s death, and fathom some reason for it, he is in fact representing a deeply felt angst in Japanese society about this issue. Suicide is a serious problem in Japan and the film has two characters that seem to have this self-destructive urge. While “Bullet Ballet” rightly shies away from giving any definitive solution to the problem, it does shine a light on it, questioning to what extent this self-destructive urge is perhaps part of a larger undercurrent of violence in society. Goda’s obsession with the gun as a solution to his anger and sense of powerlessness at the loss of his girlfriend shows that Goda is not above this descent into violence.