Guilty of Romance

Again a pure cinematic symphony of harmony and visual imagination. But still, when I've seen something from that Sion Sono, it doesn't have the wow effect like the first time. Still, I admit that no one else could possibly have made it similarly evocative (or simply piggishly explicit?) – or at least I can't think of anyone else at this moment. I'm not saying it's self-serving from start to finish, there's certainly an interpretation to be offered here along the lines of sexual frustration and how "anything can happen" when it comes to "awakening" and how far the initial desire for the occasional shag can go (plus, if the right people hire you, right...). It's a vastly different creation from Europe or America, which has its own rules and doesn't bother with any boundaries at all. I've always appreciated the breaking of established practices and conventions and the art of shocking or disgusting the viewer (whether through direct visual means or through psychological terror), but here I sometimes felt that it simply needed to shock at any cost at the expense of greater plot sophistication or greater overlap. Still, it's a kick in the ass. :) (07/20/2013)

Fucked up in a very annoying way. After what felt like three hours of boredom, I realised that I was only half-way through its 112 minute run and I thought I would faint. Cheap artsy controversy bait of the worst kind. I had to convince myself to give it that one star. (08/17/2012)