For decades, Japanese filmmaker Masashi Yamamoto has been working on films and has maintained his distinct style with recurring themes of existential crisis, consumer culture, societal degradation mostly zeroed on events and emotions that have been affecting Japanese society. His often repeated character archetypes and themes can be found in most of films. But few titles exception and far from his familiar boundary, i didn't like his horror outing and The Voice of Water (2014). After departing from his style, it's good to see Masashi Yamamoto back to his familiar zone with Wonderful Paradise (2020), so happy to see it infused with all the madness from what could be my favourite phase of his career - early experimental/edgy cinema. This film took me back to his most famous work Junk Food (1997), Carnival in the Night (1981) and my favourite Robinson's Garden (1987), a special film i revisted today on the occasion of Masashi Yamamoto's birthday. Mikio Yamazaki, known for his avant-garde films contributed partly to the screenplay. Tom Dicillo's disorienting cinematography channels everything the film needed. Let me remind, he is same guy who took care of DOP for Jim Jarmusch's Stranger Than Paradise (1984), and directed Living in Oblivion (1995) and Delirious (2006) with Steve Buscemi. Brownie points for Sakevi's cameo, he gets to thrash the Rastafari dude. GISM RULES
As the title goes, the film is inspired by Robinson Crusoe as Yamamoto relocates the story in the outskirts of Tokyo: Kumi (Kumiko Ohta), a short-haired drug peddler and freeter living in a small town community house, seems to be a misfit but she manages to do things self-sufficiently and finds happiness in gardening, hand watering the plants. There is a shot of water drops on the leaves, looks like it is adorned with white pearls as the title of the film appears to a fantastic background score. Things get adventurous after a drunken night when she discoveries an abandoned industrial warehouse. She decides to inhabit this space and liberate herself from the noise and pandemic of the outside world. The warehouse is converted into a bohemian household, a tiny arboretum and a terrace with lot of graffiti. Kumi takes it up to herself, gets into a strain with her lover and uses the space, takes help of kids to paint the vicinity and other things for the feeling of being able to shape and define her reality. The film switches to a completely different zone and it is like a hippie fantasy freak show as the outside world is shut out by metamorphosis and more greenery. I wish Masashi Yamamoto good health and may he continue making films of this kind for many more years to come.
