Why Don't You Play in Hell?

Fate causes the paths of a guerrilla film crew and two feuding Yakuza clans to clash for the second time in ten years in this outlandish comedy from 'Suicide Club' director Sion Sono. The movie initially feels like a twisted version of 'Bowfinger' or 'Cecil B. DeMented' as the young guerrilla filmmakers heartlessly intrude on the Yakuza madness to get money shots. In between the violence, there are also some moments of macabre beauty too, such as a young girl in a white dress sliding through a sea of blood, and things get more complex as the story progresses and jumps to the present. Deliciously weird and wacky as the film is, it takes a long time for the paths of the protagonists to cross once again, and the film feels way too long. It is, however, the midsection that needs trimming (especially a romance) as the carnage-heavy finale is glorious with the guerrillas' insensitivity to all the bloodshed at peak. The unemotional way in which they film all the action is uncanny; one gets a sense that they have completely lost all sense of distinction between reality and movie-making. The film has some solid performances too, particularly from Jun Kunimura as a much-feared Yakuza boss whose daughter used to be in toothpaste commercials, and Shinichi Tsutsumi as the other Yakuza boss who became fixated on Kunimura's little girl at an age that many would consider creepy. Fumi Nikaidou (as the adult daughter) also keeps singing her toothpaste jingle. It is that kind of delirious, unconventional comedy if one is in the mood for something decidedly different.

Insane, maddening, deranged, maniacal & batshit crazy from the very beginning to the very end, Why Don't You Play in Hell? is an intensely entertaining, extremely enjoyable & ridiculously fun cinema from Sion Sono that parodies a whole lot of things, is filled with frenzied performances & is undoubtedly last year's funniest film.

Why Don't You Play in Hell? concerns an amateur film crew that films anything n everything but has been waiting for its big break for over a decade. Their moment arrives when they are hired by a yakuza boss who, despite being in the middle of a feud with another yakuza clan, wants to finish the film starring his daughter as soon as possible in order to screen it for his wife's homecoming.

Written & directed by Sion Sono, the film opens with a brief ad segment & from then on, only gets crazier as the story progresses. It parodies many different films from Enter the Dragon to Kill Bill, its humour goes in all places, characters are raving lunatics, performances are wild, music is awesome but it's still got a lot of heart which makes it an enjoyable watch.

On an overall scale, Why Don't You Play In Hell? is a commendable work of quality despite its unhinged production, is sensibly composed even though its storyline goes completely bonkers & is at its bloodiest best during the final act. Hilarious as hell, an irresistible fun ride & easily the most amusing works of the year, this absolute riot of laughter & craziness comes highly recommended.

"This movie exists only to impress you."

Acclaimed Japanese director, Shion Sono (Love Exposure, Suicide Club, Coldfish) has crafted a delirious and extremely over the top comedic action thriller which will surely impress audiences all around the globe. It's very difficult to try to write a review for a film like this that seems to be all over the place. It was a truly unique and crazy experience. At first it feels like the stories aren't related, but as the film progresses every single scene serves a purpose and it all comes together at the end. Sono is an artist and in this film we can see the passion he has with film. This is his love letter to 35mm filmmaking and he mixes several genres into one glorious experience. In a way it is similar to what Quentin Tarantino brings to his films. Over the top violent action sequences with a lot of fake CGI blood, a lot of humor thrown into the mix, and several movie references. Just like Tarantino referenced Bruce Lee in Kill Bill through Uma Thurman, there is a character here who also resembles Lee in his yellow and black uniform. However Sono doesn't follow a similar narrative structure as Tarantino and doesn't rely as much on the wise cracking dialogue. WDYPIH? has a very unique structure and it's hard to know what direction its heading at times because it seems to be all over the place. It is a crazy experience, but it is hard to resist. My only complaint is with the pacing of the film which at times seems to drag. I had fun with this movie, but I still found myself checking my watch once in a while. This could've been better if it was cut to around 90 minutes, but it is still a film I admire very much.

The film centers on a group of young film aficionados who dream and pray to the movie god that he allow them to make an epic film, but it is clear they aren't heading anywhere when ten years later all they've managed to do is make a one minute trailer. There is also a huge confrontation going on between two yakuza clans. The Kitagawa yakuza clan attacked the Muto yakuza clan at their leader's own home. Muto wasn't around, but his wife faced them off leaving a pool of blood behind. Due to the violent scene, the police never believed it was self defense and imprisoned Muto's wife for ten years. Their young daughter had a successful toothpaste commercial taken off the air as well due to the violent episode. Her dreams of becoming a successful actress were shattered by the removal of the commercial. The clans have declared a truce but as Muto's wife sentence is approaching its deadline war breaks out again between them. Muto must manage the confrontation while delivering on his promise to his wife of having her daughter become the star of a movie by the time she is released. He promises it will be epic and through fate he encounters these aspiring film aficionados who are given the perfect scenario to make the film they've been dreaming of making for the past ten years. Everything seems to be leading to an outrageously bloody conclusion as Muto plans to kill two birds with one stone.

Shine Sono's love and passion for Japanese cinema can be experienced here in this unique and extremely crazy love letter to film. It is over the top and full of energy, but it always remains imaginative. It is unlike any other film I've seen and manages to capture that nostalgic sense of a disappearing art form while remaining incredibly unique and energetic. This is an extremely violent and irreverent film, but it is so over the top that it never feels gory. It can become a bit tedious due to its long running time, but the ending fulfills and it is a film that will stick with you long after the credits role. The performances from Jun Kunimura as Muto, Shin'ichi Tsutsumi as Ikegami, and Itsuji Itao as Masuda stand out in this wacky and crazy film.

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I watched this movie few days ago and it is the first Sono Sion movie I have ever watched in cinema. The movie is quite funny with bloody scenes and mad characters (especially the film producer/director played by Hiroki Hasegawa) as Sono always does. You can say that the theme is actually about 35mm film and enthusiasm towards filmmaking (or in general pursuing dream). The thing that touches me (as non film geek) is that film encourage audience to get crazy for our dreams and wild out for it (I think at this point is quite similar to Love Exposure). I would recommend this movie to film lovers but in my viewpoint, this probably cannot really come close to Love Exposure.

This film is an absolute riot. It's ridiculous, hilarious, brutally violent, and unapologetically strange. While this film will certainly not be for everyone, it was right up my alley. It's a film you can't take seriously, but you can have a lot of fun with. I absolutely recommend this film, particularly to fans of the films of Takashi Miike ("Audition", "As the Gods Will") or other Japanese cult directors. I will probably work my way through Sono's filmography until I make it to his four-hour epic, "Love Exposure".