Cold Fish

i've watched a few Japanese movies in recent years and mostly they are nearly always really interesting films. Cold Fish has to be the strangest Japanese film i have ever seen.

This is the story of two men who own two very different tropical fish stores and they are two men who have very different and extreme personalities.

This is a very graphic and violent movie that contains scenes that must have put the actors through the ringer. The physical and sexual violence is very real , it's just a shame that the film is far too long and that makes the extreme scenes lose their edge the longer the film goes on.

I cant begin to explain the moral's of the story and i'm not even sure i liked this film but i can appreciate what the actors went through.

If you interested in watching something very , very different , then Cold Fish will be right up your street.

This is a very bleak look at violence in general. While the movie starts of very slowly and more like a drama you could be excused for thinking it spins out of control. But even if you don't agree with the actions the characters are taking (mostly the only "logical" steps for them), you can't escape the grip and intensity the movie has. It does a very superb job in holding that throughout.

The acting is great (sometimes even sublime) and while you may feel like looking away, you might not be able to, because it does hold your attention with a very fine script. Not for the faint of hearted of course, this will appeal to some people, but also will appall quite a few others. But as a work of art this is within it's boundaries very good indeed!

Every now and then I come across a title that speaks to me. Now don't take me the wrong way, I don't necessarily mean that I can relate to it but it sends a message and reminds us of what we humans are really capable of. In the dark of all Hollywood movies, Japanese action-movies and romantic comedies that flood the box offices lie small gritty and pitch black movies that just wait to be found by those who can handle it.

This isn't a movie for those that only like mindless gore like Saw or Hostel. Instead it delves deep into the darkness we humans can fall into and it doesn't let us out even once. Someone wrote that those who are into dark comedies could take a liking to this movie, I'd say that if you take this on as a dark comedy then you're missing the point of the movie and shouldn't be watching it in the first place. For that purpose there are far more gory "entertainment" out there to laugh or giggle at.

If you're a fan of really dark thrillers with drama and characters with depth then you'll definitely love this movie. Others may love it as well but at the very least you should not watch this if you have a weak heart, and that's not only due to the gore in this movie. I'd go so far as to say that in terms of atmospheric darkness not even the Vengeance Trilogy comes close. This becomes even more apparent due to the fact that this movie is loosely based on events that truly have transpired.

I'm not gonna' delve into the story of the movie as I myself lose a lot of the surprise when I hear about a movie like this. I hope I've been of help and that you'll be ready to see what may be your darkest movie yet (if you're able to not try and laugh it off).

Mild mannered Nobuyuki Shamoto (Mitsuru Fukikoshi), owner of a modest tropical fish shop, lives with his pretty teenage daughter Mitsuki (Hikari Kajiwara) and surprisingly hot second wife Taeko (Megumi Kagurazaka); sadly, the women in his life do not see eye to eye (to put it mildly). When Mitsuko is caught shoplifting, Yukio Murata (Denden), a successful businessman who also sells exotic aquatic livestock, steps in and gets Mitsuki off with a warning. Brash, charismatic, and cunning Murata uses this as an opportunity to begin manipulating the grateful Shamoto family, offering desperate Mitsuki a job as one of his store girls (all of whom are pretty, and wear tight vests and short shorts!), bringing meek Yukio under his wing as his apprentice, and sneaking a shag with the not-very-content Taeko.

Murata also reveals to a Nobuyuki his unique method of dealing with difficult acquaintances: he poisons them and then, with help from his obedient and rather sexy wife Aiko (Asuka Kurosawa), takes the bodies to a remote shack where he makes them 'disappear' (ie., chops them up, burns the bones, and sprinkles the remains in the woods). When Murata insists that Yukio help dispose of a victim, he is too shocked and scared too refuse; now, as an accomplice to murder, he finds himself trapped by the over-bearing and frankly quite scary Murata—fearful not only for himself, but also for the lives of his wife and daughter.

However, a man can only be pushed so far: after several more stomach-churning visits to the shack, learning of his wife's infidelity, suffering a beating from Murata, and being forced to have sex with Aiko (the poor guy!), Nobiyuki finally snaps, attacking Mr and Mrs Murata with a biro (not the greatest of weapons, perhaps, but it does the trick). Now it is time for Yukio Murata to disappear, with Mrs. Murata only too happy to help, clearly turned on by the fact that Nobiyuki has at last grown a pair. The now empowered Nobiyuki also sets about straightening out his ungrateful wife and daughter, using methods definitely NOT sanctioned by most family guidance counsellors.

Other reviews here on IMDb comment on what a harsh viewing experience Cold Fish is, with its brutal murders, bodily dismemberment, rape and in your face gore; but while it's certainly not what I'd call family viewing, I wasn't too fazed by the extreme content, finding much of the film darkly humorous rather than disturbing (but then I've watched a fair few gruesome Asian movies in my time, and am probably a tad desensitised). Indeed, I was ready to dismiss the film as a far-fetched and overlong wish-fulfilment fantasy for downtrodden Japanese males, when I decided to watch the interview with investigative journalist Jake Adelstein on the extras disc, something that altered my perception of the film slightly. Although the beginning of Cold Fish had stated that it was based on a true story, I had taken this with a large pinch of salt (so many movies make this wild claim); as it happens, most of what director Shion Sono depicts proves to be not all that far from the truth (at least until Nobiyuki snaps), making his film a lot more chilling in retrospect.

Nobuyuki Syamoto (Mitsuru Fukikoshi) muddles though life with a new wife, a daughter who shoplifts, and a crummy little fish store. He is destined for nothing but boredom and stargazing.

He comes into contact with Yukio Murata (Denden), who is a gregarious individual with a fish supermarket staffed by buxom and scantily clad girls. He takes Syamoto under his wing and introduces him to his hobby - killing people.

This is a black comedy that never bores and has some really good scenes. In one the family of a missing man comes in with their Yakuza buddies. While Yukio is putting on a show, his wife is in the next room with Syamoto's daughter in the process of seducing her. The camera goes back and forth elevating the comedy until they send the family packing.

The transformation of Syamoto occurs suddenly, and ferociously, with jaw dropping action in the end. The level of blood and gore rises to new heights and it gets so bizarre that you can't take your eyes away.