Moviegoing Memories is a series of short interviews with filmmakers about going to the movies. Takashi Miike's First Love is MUBI GO's Film of the Week of February 14, 2020.
NOTEBOOK: How would you describe your movie in the least amount of words?
TAKASHI MIIKE: "Super B movie."
NOTEBOOK: Where and what is your favorite movie theater? Why is it your favorite?
MIIKE: Osaka Shochikuza in Dotonbori, Osaka. When I was in junior high school, I went to see Chaplin's City Lights, which was being screened as a revival. Unfortunately it was full and standing room only so I gave up. Then I ended up seeing The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I felt that something popped in the heart of a pure boy. My life would have been different if City Lights wasn’t full. Thanks to Charlie Chaplin and Tobe Hooper.
NOTEBOOK: What is the most memorable movie screening of your life? Why is it memorable?
MIIKE: Midnight Madness at the 1997 Toronto Film Festival, when Fudoh: The New Generation was screened. It was the first film festival that I was invited to. Even though nobody knew me, the audience was excited and there was a great atmosphere. I learnt that movies would be completed by the cinema audience.
NOTEBOOK: If you could choose one classic film to watch on the big screen, what would it be and why?
MIIKE: I would choose a Japanese Yakuza movie called Cops vs. Thugs directed by Kinji Fukasaku, because I want to see all the details of the movie and absorb the energy of the old Japanese cinema. In this era of Japanese movies, there were two different times clearly marked. One was the period the story was set in and the other was the moment of shooting. In the current digital age, I feel this has been lost. I don’t think it is because of the digital camera, I think it is caused by us who use the camera.