Rubber's Lover

Look, while there's a lot that could be said about the content of this film, all I'll say is that it was surprising to find it uploaded on YouTube, even if the upload was age-restricted.

I was lucky to even find the time today to watch something feature-length, but I was unlucky that the film I picked was Rubber's Lover. It had been on my watchlist for ages, and it was directed by the filmmaker who did 964 Pinocchio (Shozin Fukui), which is a divisive and confronting film that I ended up appreciating more than I anticipated. I might even feel like calling that one a good movie, in some ways.

I can appreciate Rubber's Lover a little, but not nearly as much. It's stripped down and low-budget as a horror movie, and tries to work within its limitations. To some extent, it works, because I think it kind of sets out what it wanted to do. I more feel that what it wanted to do wasn't enough for something that was an hour and a half long; that or it did actually have loftier aspirations that weren't well explored or communicated.

Option B or C or whatever is, of course, that I'm a dummy, but I think Rubber's Lover was actually a bit dumb instead. I can't muster up hate when it's got the kind of atmosphere it does, and when some of the gross moments are effectively gross, but it all felt a little meandering and maybe even just the tiniest bit lazy, at the end of the day.

Really I can appreciate an artistic movie, especially if its Japanese but it still needs to serve a clear purpose or point all in order for me to fully appreciate and enjoy.

And no, "Rubber's Lover" doesn't really seem to have a clear point about what it is trying to do or say. It's like a psychedelic trip, that isn't even necessarily surreal. It doesn't really feature a clear storyline in it and I won't pretend as if I understood everything about this movie. Honestly, more than half of the time I had no idea what I was watching and what was going on all.

But this is OK really. I can also like and enjoy a movie for other reasons, when it's trying to be more of an artistic one. And from an artistic viewpoint this movie does definitely has its qualities. But still I can only take so much of it. Turning this into an 90 minutes just probably wasn't a very good idea, since the movie is just not an easy one to watch and follow. I'm sure I would had really liked this movie so much better if it got done as an 30 minutes short.

But still I didn't regret watching this movie and it wasn't an horrible waste of time or anything like that. It still was a nice visual experience to have to go through. I'm actually fond of modern movies shot in black & white, like this movie was. The movie does feature some nice looking and interesting moments in it, which makes it obvious that director Shozin Fukui felt at ease with the material and really knew what he was doing. I only wish I could understand as well though.

Obviously not a movie for just everyone.

6/10

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Scientists use a brain-altering drug to conduct experiments, after one such project goes astray, they need to find another test subject in this Japanese splatter-punk film. On it's surface Rubber's Lover can be compared to Tetsuo: the Iron Man (shot in black and white, weird, kinetic, and machine driven), but it's different enough to stand on it's own merits, even if it's not nearly as good as the aforementioned film. Good for a viewing or two, but it's not one of the films that you'll return to over and over again. Still for an obviously low-budget film it IS entertaining.

My Grade: C+

DVD Extras: "Gerorisuto" short film; Interview with Shozin Fukui; Photo gallery; Theatrical Trailer; Trailers for "Electric Dragon 80000V", and "Junk"

This does for corporate research science what 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' does for inbred hillbillies. It is a film about psychic warfare that makes David Cronenberg's 'Scanners' seem ineffectual. Tho I don't like Rubber's Lover as much as Fukui's other feature, '964 Pinocchio,' it is certainly remarkable. What makes this film chilling to the bone is not the strange technology depicted or the spooky black & white cinematography or the creepy narrative ambiguities, tho this all adds. It is the screaming, hysterical, overblown performances by the actors which really gives the impression of terrible violence. Tho there is a decent amount of physical splatter in this film, the real gore is psychological. Try this film. you'll feel like a rhesus monkey in a head trauma experiment, and you'll like it!

Much of this movie has the feel of a Tsukamoto (Tetsuo,Vital,A Snake of June) film, but the differences in story and plot have great distinctions. To save time and for the sake of your interest I will not re-summarize the film, but tell you what to expect. This film is almost as vivid and has as many common traits as Tetsuo, though with a different theme. For all of my friends, the sheer amount of screaming was unbearable, but it really is necessary. Effects weren't flashy, but they suited well. Acting was fantastic (only a real actor will wear one of those rubber suits). Overall, a great movie that will certainly make you perceive many things in a new way from now on, which I think is a goal that more films should strive to achieve. Not for the faint of heart, so watch at your own risk. If you enjoyed Rubber, you may like 964 Pinocchio, also by Shozin Fukui.