A sex-obsessed young woman, a suicidal young man she meets on the street, a gun-crazy wannabe gangster—these are just three of the irrational, oddball anarchists trapped in an underground hideaway in Oshima’s devilish, absurdist film.
This film is not currently playing on MUBI but 30 other great films are. See what’s now showing
Japanese Summer: Double SuicideDirected byNagisa Ôshima
Blending the political zeal of Godard’s Dziga-Vertov Group with the freewheeling, pop-art sensibility of that director’s earlier work, Oshima envisioned the modern art film as a direct provocation to the culture at large.
The most Godardian thing I've seen from Oshima so far. There isn't much case in discussing the plot since the preconceived notions of the subject matter become evident rather early in the movie, but the film is as much about its one-sentence idea as to how interesting he can make it without degressing into self-consciousness, something he largely avoids thanks an engaging storytelling.
Another example of pure art, in cinema. The feel of this film is amazing. It feels empty and alone. It seems that no one besides the main 15 or so characters you meet live in that city. It's empty and Oshima utilizes silence a lot, other than the characters talking.
This seriously but not-literally blew me away. As if having some of the loveliest framing and lighting I've ever seen wasn't enough, its socially and politically charged narrative is constantly captivating, and takes some shocking turns.
Permanente et souveraine confrontation entre Eros et Thanatos, unis dans l'apothéose ensanglanté d'un signifiant shinju (terme nippon évoquant le double suicide des amants), cette oeuvre inclassable d'un Nagisa Oshima irascible et radical, déconstruit avec hargne, constance et bonheur le glorieux mythe japonais des yakusas. www.cinefiches.com