X-Cross

Kenta Fukasaku isn't the most focused of film makers. So, with film dealing with multiple narratives around the same time, it's a jumpy and patchy horror that could have been told straight. Still, it allows him to chop up some bits and pieces and assemble some moments that would seem obscure otherwise. Mainly, the scissor wielding woman whose presence is enjoyable, but befuddling. The rest of the film is a Wicker-Man with cellphones, which is interesting, but leaves you wondering why the police aren't phoned more often/at all. The performances are suitable and sometimes border on emotional, which adds to the scenes of real horror. Towards the end the pace levels out but remains furious.

Came in with low expectations to find that this movie really works. It is sold as 'horror' but it's really not. Sure there's a village that wants to sacrifice these 2 girls to their god, but it's not really 'horror' at all. The movie unfolds as an action/suspense movie really as the two leads are separated minutes into the movie and then we have follow their survival paths and see where they continually almost link up. It sounds cliché almost, but really it works. There's no body count, no gore, just an old fashioned "who's betrayed me" plot while running from the masses. And I actually did NOT figure out whodunit and was nicely surprised when it all unfolded.

This movie is more of a action-comedy than horror. In fact, it's only scary for the first 10 minutes, then it turns into this action-packed survival game so outrageous that it made me laugh through the movie.

The plot is simple, a girl takes a female friend to a hot-spring resort to cheer her up from a breakup. It turns out to be the village of a cult-like tribe with a ritual that involves chopping off young women's legs. They also encounter a psycho Lolita woman seeking revenge for losing her boyfriend.

This movie is not meant to be taken seriously. The setting of this film is ridiculously unrealistic, but the sequence of events is uncovered and explained very well. If you look past the unlikeliness of the original setting, this movie's plot makes sense and there were no major plot holes other than Suzuki Ami's character being abnormally strong and villagers abnormally weak (but I guess that's intentionally done for comedy).

Suzuki Ami's action sequence against "the scissors girl" Reika was really exciting and cool. It really hit the spot for a huge Suzuki Ami fan like me. Matsushita Nao's acting has been extremely corny in every movie and TV dramas I've seen until now, but she seemed surprisingly natural and fit the role very well. She may have a hidden talent as a horror actress.

As a action-comedy film, this movie is really well made. Action/CG/SFX were all quite nice, and it was a really exciting suspense movie. Sit back, don't think, and enjoy the ride.

I almost feel bad about not liking X Cross all that much. Its not that its an impeccably crafted film that I simply don't enjoy, no sense of guilt here, but for a film feted by most reviewers as great fun and pretty righteous stuff, it had little impact on me. Two girls head to a remote mountain village for hot springs and relaxation, one has recently suffered a bad breakup and her more free-wheeling friend is with her to help cheer her up. Unfortunately the village is home to a crazed cult with bad things in mind… It's a nifty set-up and for the first half hour or so the film looks as if it'll power up into a neat little suspenseful chase film, but this never quite materialises. The big problem is that while the film handles its build up well, the townsfolk are never menacing and their appearances or scenes of pursuit are never well directed. What should be pulse pounding stuff is simply a big fat meh, and excitement is mostly provided by a subplot involving a very angry lady with over-sized scissors and a grudge against the heroines friend. These scenes are a lot of fun and have all the action and dynamism that seems absent from the cult encounters. Fortunately, though director Kenta Fukasaku may be flawed in this respect, he does seem to have inherited some of his dads playful style and flair for intrigue. There are perspective shifts a-plenty, fast rewinds and intertitles, plus shifting loyalties and twisting character motivations, which combined with the fast pace give the film a fairly compelling grip that works beyond its actual quality. Plus Ami Suzuki and Nao Matsushita are pretty decent as the two leads, Matsushita as the disheartened Shiyori and Suzuki as her outgoing yet somewhat insensitive and inconsiderate pal. The setting works well too, a sense of uncanny semi luxury what with the remote location, hot springs and multitude of picturesque cabins, though the best moments of the film occur in a toilet and a junkyard. Handy set designs, workable atmosphere, everything is set up just right but the film remains resolutely a damp squib outside of the aforementioned scissor-lady. Its never bad exactly, just weak, though it has a few fine spots and a suitably wacky ending that goes out on just the right note. So altogether, about a 5/10 or so. Maybe I'll like it more on a second view, but for now its simply pretty average.

On the one hand, the premise is very promising, recalling international classics from the 70s. On the other hand, even within the first five minutes we're greeted (and not for the last time) with small choices of stylization (e.g., a sparkling effect on metal, and on the title card) that raise a skeptical eyebrow. On the one hand, we're readily treated to absolutely outstanding, creepy production design and art direction, readily inviting an unsettling atmosphere that evokes Christophe Gans' 'Silent Hill,' or the essential masterpieces of John Carpenter. On the other hand, Fukasaku Kenta's direction quickly tends to feel gauchely forthright if not also overcharged, with a further apparent predilection for stylization, that (a) does not pair well with image quality and production values that are intermittently and irregularly bare-faced and glaring, and which (b) run contrary to the atmosphere the picture otherwise aims to conjure. Within a fraction of the total runtime (one-sixth) 'X-cross' begins to feel like a mixed bag, and we must hope that the scales will come to tip in a favorable direction.

Unfortunately, I don't think the situation improves. I don't know where the responsibility lies, though I suspect it's split between director Fukasaku, writer Oishi Tetsuya, the source material of Joko Nobuyuki, and producer Kondo Masatake. The fact is that what sounds like a fantastic concept, and which boasts some fine contributions in various capacities, is less than fully convincing. In all regards - the plot and its development, scene writing, dialogue, characterizations - the writing is so blunt and straightforward as to be gawky, ham-fisted, and off-putting. There is no subtlety or nuance in the conjuration, seemingly stemming from the novel as much as the adaptation, and frankly, despite good ideas the storytelling is just flimsy. Blame the writing as one will, however, Fukasaku's direction doesn't do much to impress either. Elements and moments that should be striking and delightfully twisted - a character being startled, a strange village elder, a distinct sound effect - are presented in such a curt and flat manner that all their power is forfeit. Even the climax struggles heavily. Furthermore, his direction indeed remains consistently overzealous, and tactless, and the embellishments of stylization continue to plague the proceedings, too. All the feature needed to do was to tell a story, but it goes overboard in so many ways trying to be Extra, and in so doing, it stumbles.

Ike Yoshihiro's music tends to suffer from these same problems. So do the costume design, hair, and makeup. Even the shot composition, cinematography, editing, and sound design come across as overwrought, as if the folks involved thought themselves to be more clever than they are. All aspects may bear some good ideas, by all means, but these only get us so far when the execution leaves so much to be desired. Granted, it's not all bad. I maintain that the production design and art direction are strong, and the filming locations are splendid. Even the lighting is swell in helping to summon that atmosphere, and many practical effects and stunts are very good. But too much of the acting does just as much to earn one's ire, and the gaudy flourishes that are so profuse in these ninety minutes wear thin swiftly. Case in point, someone thought very highly of themselves as the plot development adopts a "non-linear" structure - but here that notion is terribly cheapened with rapid rewinding or fast-forwarding of scenes we've already watched so as to shift to concurrent events focusing on another character from the point of where a given scene left off.

Further consider some extra over-the-top dialogue, props, or scenes, and one character who seems to be present for no particular reason at all, and the esteem one may be inclined to bestow drops significantly over time. I believe there was real potential in the concept, but some ideas clash - sometimes trying to be an earnest horror-thriller, sometimes unabashedly leaning into the approach of a pure fun-loving romp - and some are just plain bad. The definite strengths are all too few, the possible strengths are highly variable, and the shortcomings and faults are entirely too numerous. Part of me feels bad about being so critical, but time and again as I watched I recognized dubious creative choices that robbed the movie of all its impact, and the end product is ultimately just rather vexing and tiresome. There are far worse ways to spend one's time, certainly, yet with so much else that we could be watching in the first place, be it wild lark or chilling thriller, why would we spend our time here? I'm glad for those who enjoy 'X-cross' more than I do, but I somewhat wish I had spent ninety minutes more wisely.