Gozu review

Like him or hate him; Tikashi Miike's films are always hit or miss affairs. They are either brutally violent, thought provokingly violent, bizarrely violent, comically violent or just unbearably slow brutal violence but the common theme here is always violence. This 2003 film of his almost lulled me to sleep (keeping my brain awake but the rest of me almost in a trance like state) and about three quarters of the way through this movie I suddenly realised what I was watching. Rather than tell you peeps the message I got from this movie I would rather let you watch it for yourselves as I'm pretty sure that each of you will see it in a different light. Make no mistake...Miike's films are a very surreal experience and most are a treat to watch but the majority of films will test ones patience. This is more of a "testing patience" kind of film and if you are to compare it to his other works then I would say that it's as slow moving (or slower) as his movie "audition". Not all of it is bleak though and there is some comedic elements included and even some slapstick humour so in retrospect I'd say that if you watch films for entertainment purposes and to relax then this is not something that you would like but if like me and you like to break down films and try to decipher the director's message then you are in for a treat. Some viewers might require to see this twice or more to fully understand what is going on but in my opinion, it is definitely worth your time.