La ruleta de la fortuna y la fantasía

'Wheel Of Fortune And Fantasy (2021)' is a triptych of entirely independent short stories loosely connected by their shared themes of fate and finding truth through purposely affected false pretences. Told primarily via dialogue with very little formalistic flair, the three stories vary in quality but are consistently grounded and character-driven. They're all very play-like in their execution and construction, with their various reveals and thematic elements being contained entirely within the conversations that act as their beating heart. This is, of course, is to be expected from writer-director Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, whose other recent effort, 'Drive My Car (2021)', was similar in terms of its - for lack of a better term - talky nature. The difference is that Hamaguchi plays around with structure in that piece and uses both its more prominent theming and its intimidating length to craft genuinely affecting character interactions as it approaches its finale. Here, he doesn't have time to really do what he does best - that being slow-burning, character-building drama - or, at the very least, he doesn't get to do it to the best of his abilities. The format simply doesn't allow for the same kind of development. That's not to imply that this effort is entirely unsuccessful. It's relatively engaging throughout and its stories progress fairly unexpectedly without feeling as though they're being subversive for the sake of it. The naturalistic acting enhances the cleanly grounded atmosphere, with the players disappearing into their roles to the point that it's sometimes easy to forget they're performing at all. There are some really long takes in here, too, which subtly showcase the technical prowess of all involved - both in front of and behind the camera. Ultimately, it is a little underwhelming, though. It doesn't grip you all that tightly and the pacing of all three shorts is fairly loose, leading to a bit of a meandering vibe that doesn't do the piece any favours. It's never boring, but it's never exciting or emotionally moving, either. It is interesting on occasion and it's undeniably a well-made affair, but it never rises beyond being just good (if that makes sense). Still, it's a solid effort overall.

The beauty of this movie lies in its simplicity and class. This is a classy movie with elegant characters, inspired by French cinema: Actors keep talking like there is no tomorrow. If you enjoy dialogue driven drama movies with some offbeat-comedy elements, you will enjoy it.

There are a few minor twists here and there but this is not a thrilling or exciting movie. Not groundbreaking or some kind of masterpiece either.

7.4/10. A very good movie for this genre.

Clearly, this movie polarises viewers. For me, way better than same director's Drive My Car. As good as Burning, American Honey, Stuff and Dough, or Our Time, a few of my benchmarks for 21st century cinema.

The original Japanese title, which translates as Coincidence and Imagination, is much more apt than the clunky English title.

To illustrate his theme, the director writes the most utterly brilliant dialogue, which is sort of like 3D scrabble on steroids.

For all of that, it still needs the wonderful third reel, where the coincidences coalesce into genuine insight and wisdom, of the sort that can reduce you to sudden tears in a darkened cinema.

Hamaguchi-san, you are an ornament, go to the top of the class. I reckon the old masterful deceiver, Bunuel, will be smiling down upon you.

(Apologies in advance for spending most of this review comparing the film to Drive My Car... I couldn't help it 😔)

The less well-known (but still quite good) 2021 film by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. I understand why Drive My Car has made more of an impact, and overall I enjoyed it more. But this is a different sort of movie and it's interesting to compare and contrast the two.

Apparently Drive My Car blended several short stories, but did it in a way where (to me at least) it felt like one coherent three-hour film. Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy tells three short stories as three short films, each approximately 40 minutes long. Because of this, I'd say it lacked the almost hypnotic effect that Drive My Car had, where it sucks you in and becomes absorbing the longer it goes on.

One other interesting difference: it doesn't make the movie better or worse, but I found it interesting how in Drive My Car, the lead characters keep their emotions held in, whereas in Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy, characters are surprisingly open. Even when they hide the truth, it doesn't take long for them to reveal it (maybe besides the third story, which emotionally feels the most similar to Drive My Car).

This film isn't as beautiful as Drive My Car. Some of it looks a little rough and flat to be honest, but maybe the minimalist style was intentional, and to be fair, there are a few visually arresting shots throughout that really stand out.

The stories themselves are interesting, and the dialogue mostly engaging. Acting is good across the board too, and overall, while it's not always consistently absorbing, I enjoyed it for the most part, and much of it is undeniably well-made.

2021 was a good year for Hamaguchi, and I'm interested to see what he directs next.

Among the best dialogues I've ever seen. Touching, emotional and very smart. It's the kind of film that you need to be 100% on it but it really worths. All these characters seem real and it's all about life choices.