Visitor Q

Visitor Q is hard to deal with, but I think I'd call this a masterpiece. This is an update of Pier Paolo Pasolini's Teorema. It's often compared to Pasolini's Salò because of its shocking content, but, plot-wise, it's virtually a remake of the 1968 film, brilliantly updated and moved to modern Japan. Teorema is not Pasolini's best film, but I do consider it a great one. It is a very simple allegory. Miike expands the concept even further. A family is falling apart, and a stranger whom nobody seems to know moves into their home and starts knocking some sense into them (sometimes literally). There are some truly disturbing things in Visitor Q that few people of sound mind and body will want to sit through. Fortunately, I am not of sound mind or body. If you can take it, the film can be extremely funny, as well. And I think it actually captures something truthful not only about the decay of Japanese culture, but also the rest of the world. It just does this in the most extreme way possible. Most will probably judge that it goes too far. I thought it was amazing.

This was the fourth Miike film I've seen (Audition, Ichi, Gozu...well 5th if you count his short from Three Extremes) and I think this was by far the most bizarre and disturbing. I'm not squeamish or easily affected by movies so it didn't really disturb me but I can see where it would be disturbing to the average viewer. Miike did manage to hit upon almost every taboo in the books. I'll admit that I did feel somewhat dirty because I got turned on by the opening scene...but hey, it's a just a movie.

Overall I think it was a unique take on the reality TV craze and voyeourism in general. While I didn't like it as much as his other movies that I've seen it's definitely worth checking out.

Following an extremely disfunctional family, who do anything from prostitution to necrophilia, the audience is in for a bit of a shock. Somehow it's decently made and believable thanks to the raw actors performances. I have no idea how someone writes a script like this, gets it funded for production and finds actors to bring it to life. So strange, but far from fantasy.

I've seen over half a dozen Takashi Miike movies, so I'm aware of how bizarre his output can be, but nothing can quite prepare you for how extreme 'Visitor Q' is! In the last decade Miike has gone from straight to video crime thrillers to genre-busting arthouse cult favourites by following his own unique vision. He's also breathtakingly prolific, having completed around twenty projects since this, which was released only three years ago(!) Miike's best known movies in the last few years include the ultra-violent live action manga 'Ichi The Killer', the slow psychological thriller 'Audition', and the zany, feel good zombie musical 'The Happiness Of The Katakuris'. Those three movies alone prove he is the most exciting and innovative director working today, but 'Visitor Q' takes him to a whole new level. 'Pink Flamingos' meets 'Salo' meets reality TV on crack(?) However you try and describe this movie it just won't be adequate. When I say you just have to see it to believe it, I'm not just taking in cliches! 'Visitor Q' is shot on digital video in a pseudo-documentary style. In the opening scene we see a middle aged man (Kenicho Endo, who you might recognize from Miike's 'Dead Or Alive 2') inadvertently videotaping himself having sex with a teenage prostitute. They are in fact father and daughter. This is just the beginning of a very strange trip for the viewer! The father is a failed TV reporter who comes up with a new program idea about bullying using his own teenage son (Jun Muto), who is being victimized by his classmates and in turn abuses his own mother (Shungiku Uchida). She is secretly addicted to heroin and turns tricks to support her habit. Into this ultra-dysfunctional family comes a mysterious visitor (Kazushi Watanabe) who we are introduced to when we see him brain the father with a rock. Exactly who or what the visitor is is never explained, but his presence effects the family in various odd ways, strangely bringing them closer together. His character reminded me a bit of the messiah figures in Coffin Joe's 'Finis Hominis' or J.G. Ballard's 'The Unlimited Dream Company'. 'Visitor Q' slowly creeps up on you with images of abuse and abnormal behavior until around the three quarter mark when you are left staring slack jawed at the screen not quite believing what you are seeing! When the movie cuts between Father in the greenhouse and Mother in the kitchen with Visitor Q (I won't/can't go into details!) it's the most extraordinary sequence I've watched in any movie EVER! It goes with saying that 'Visitor Q' is not for most people, but if you appreciate the surreal and the confrontational, then this is one movie you MUST see. I think in decades to come it will regarded as a milestone and spoken of in the same breath as Bunuel, Jodorowsky, Lynch and Cronenberg.

A lot of people joke about Visitor Q being a family film and being a good film to watch with your whole family, but the funny thing is that I really did watch this film with my whole family! Mum, Dad, sister and even dog sat down to watch this with me and we all made it through to the end. We all had very different reactions. My Dad called it something along the lines of "sick crap" and wondered why I would buy this sort of thing. My Mum was more understanding, but thought it was just a film to shock its audience. My sister was just plain confused, and I'm pretty sure my dog fell asleep! Visitor Q is not a film for everyone. You either 'get' this sort of thing or you don't. I think Visitor Q is the type of film you can't really judge until you know what it was trying to say. It's very easy to say "this is just a mindless, sick piece of work. Chuck it on the bonfire!" but knowing Takeshi Miike, like I sort of do, Visitor Q has much more to say beneath its disturbing and perplexing surface.

The film opens with one of the most disturbing scenes in the whole film. It's an explicit (but blurred) sex scene between a father and his daughter. The scene feels like it's going on forever and it's extremely uncomfortable to watch. Thankfully it's not entirely clear at first that the two are related (I thought it was a man and a prostitute by the way they were communicating) until there's mentioning of her Mum and her allowance. It sets the tone for the film.

Visitor Q feels like a series of increasingly effed up events within a strange and thoroughly dysfunctional family. Miike addresses every taboo in the book and it's not an easy watch. Some of the more alarming taboos are played for laughs though, which makes it a little easier to watch, but it just comes across as plain weird! Visitor Q is a seriously deranged film and just about matches Gozu in terms of absurdity. I'm still not entirely sure in what it all means, but some have pointed to the visitor as being the viewer, which is an interesting take.

The film looks extremely low budget. It has been given an alarming sense of realism thanks to the documentary style in which it has been shot. It looks grainy and cheap, but it suits the film well. It's devoid of the Hollywood gloss we constantly see in mainstream films, which makes everything seem all the more disturbing. Visitor Q is extremely slow to begin with and is even a little boring sometimes, which is a shame. Thankfully though there are some funny moments to keep you going and the final half hour is pretty much non-stop footage of disturbing behaviour.

I don't really know if I liked it or not, but it's certainly something I'll never forget. I was hoping for something more because people always rave about it, but is that just because it dares to break so many taboos in 80 minutes? Visitor Q is a film for people with open minds and those people who only watch Hollywood movies should stay well clear of this. It's sometimes tedious, but always disquieting. I would've liked more character development around the family because they really are an interesting lot. I wouldn't recommend watching it with your family though like I did. It does get a little awkward!