A Midnight Madness favourite in 2007, Hitoshi Matsumoto’s outrageous superhero-versus-giant-monsters comedy Dainipponjin was a true big-screen freak show. His second feature, Symbol, is a mind-melting journey into the deepest realm of his imagination. To say that Symbol is difficult to describe is an understatement of epic proportions.
In the central tale, a Japanese man (Matsumoto) wakes up alone in a brightly illuminated white room with no windows or doors. When he presses a mysteriously phallic protuberance that appears on one wall, a pink toothbrush materializes from nowhere, clattering to the floor and setting in motion a genuinely bizarre chain of events. Soon the imprisoned man is engaged in absurd and hilarious attempts to escape the gleaming room, releasing random objects from the walls, creating a life-sized Mouse Trap game in which a rope, a toilet plunger and an earthenware jug full of sushi might just be the keys to his escape.
Meanwhile, in a dusty town, a green-masked Mexican wrestler known as Escargot Man prepares for an important match. His family gathers around him, worried about his seeming impassivity before battle. As the nameless prisoner appears closer to escape and Escargot Man steps into the ring, Matsumoto amplifies the baffling yet suspenseful atmosphere to a crescendo of ridiculous excess.
A hugely popular comedian in Japan, Matsumoto has a finely honed, deadpan approach to absurdist humour. His exuberant and audacious sophomore effort will provoke thought, laughter and some manic head scratching. Intertwining two seemingly unrelated narratives, Symbol delivers a stunning visual feast while taking the outlandishness of each scene to dizzying heights. —tiff.net
