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Sion Sono can be exhilarating and exhausting in equal measure, and I approach any of his films with at least a little trepidation. Even with some pretty off-putting films under his belt (and which those are depends on who you ask), he’s managed to put together a wildly inventive and varied filmography.
In my opinion, he has no greater achievement than the astoundingly violent, visually dynamic, and absurdly bonkers Why Don’t you Play In Hell?.
It’s an absurd and darkly hilarious movie that can’t possibly be neatly summarized. The tale follows several different character threads that culminate with a group of hungry amateur guerrilla filmmakers getting a chance to direct and film a real Yakuza gang war for their long dreamed-of movie masterpiece. Intertwined with this story is a bizarre love triangle in which a young woman, a former child star, is pulled between her overbearing gang boss father, his rival boss who has always been obsessed with her, and a hapless nerd who becomes her unlikely friend.
The film wears its love for film on its sleeve, especially in the form of its protagonists, the “Fuck Bombers”, a group of DIY filmmakers who gleefully apply their craft to these most insane of circumstances. Heck, this would make a great double feature with One Cut of the Dead.
While immensely violent, this is not among the subgenre of Japanese horror films that typically have either “Gore” or “Girl” in the title. It’s a well-made, smartly written film with a story that escalates such that it that just keeps getting more and more interesting.
And if you need any more convincing, the great Jun Kunimura stars as a yakuza boss!
A/V Out!
https://www.hiyahtv.com/why-don-t-you-play-in-hell
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