Gureitofuru deddo

Neglected as a child, an independently wealthy young woman spends her time spying on individuals who she considers to be as lonely and isolated as her in this decidedly offbeat film from Japan. The movie initially plays out like a quirky comedy with lead actress Kumi Takiuchi grinning from ear to ear all the time while riding her bicycle, camping on rooftops and taking notes on the lonely citizens she enjoys watching, whom she terms "Solitarians". The plot thickens though when one such "Solitarian" turns out to be less cut off from the world than she thought. First, he lets himself be smitten by Christian missionaries, then his extended family keep popping by, and things turn very horror-like as Takiuchi takes drastic measures to ensure that the man remains the "Solitarian" that she initially identified him as being. The structure of the film is hardly perfect. The young actress who plays Takiuchi as a child is equally effective, if not more so, and the film could have benefited from spending more time on her traumatised childhood, while the horror angle comes extremely late in the piece - something that results in the second half of the film feeling far superior to the first half. Never to mind, Takiuchi never falters throughout and the film is full of neat touches, such as the constant use of upbeat music to highlight her delirious view of the world, smiling as non-Solitarians are hit and assaulted. Takashi Sasano (playing the man she becomes obsessed with) holds his end up very well too, almost becoming just as irrational as her as all the madness spirals towards a close.

A girl from a highly dysfunctional family grows up a loner with a tendency towards violent episodes. As a young woman she develops the hobby of spying on fellow loners and the lonely. One day she sees her favourite subject, an old man, with a Christian volunteer. The realisation that he may be leaving his solitude sets off a dangerous anger within her and she decides to take his fate into her own hands with deadly intentions.

This Japanese movie is one that seems to have gone somewhat under the radar. It's certainly a left-of-centre effort for sure that doesn't firmly place itself within one specific genre. It sets out for its first hour as an oddball comedy but in its final third it turns darker with the focus switching to the horror genre. It benefits from a couple of spirited performances from Kumi Takiuchi as Nami the disturbed young woman and Takashi Sasano as Shiomi the old man. The material never fully comes together in an entirely cohesive manner, however, with the whole idea of a girl spying on solitary people a concept that isn't developed as much as it might have been. The result is a pretty loose movie that doesn't entirely gel. It's still well worth a watch though if you enjoy Japanese movies from the quirkier side of the spectrum and it benefits also from being offbeat enough to be kind of unpredictable.

Nami (Kumi Takiuchi) is a lonely young girl prone to outbursts of left field violence, due to being ignored by her poverty-relief obsessed mother who leaves one day, leaving her with her depressed father and older sister. Nami's dad takes on a mistress and still ignored and with her sister now with a boyfriend, Nami seeks constant solace in in an inane shopping channel, captivated by the gadgets and bargains offered by the smiling host.

Years later, Nami, now a young woman has a peculiar hobby in which she observes and takes notes on sad and very lonely elderly people, who she calls "Solitarians". There's the angry middle aged man who barges by everywhere rudely bumping people aside, and there's the crazy homeless looking guy who feeds the pigeons, all collectively becoming Nami's muse and a source of endearment. One specific solitarian catches her attention. He's Mr. Shiomi (Takashi Sasano) an embittered old man, who once empowered with former status, is now alone, lonely and angry, going through each day with a grumpy, dreary resignation.

Nami is captivated by this with Mr Shiomi providing her with much entertainment. One day however a Christian missionary woman Su Yong (Khobbi Kim) visits Mr Shiomi and asks if he'd like her to engage in bible reading with him. Suspicious at first, Mr Shiomi eventually agrees and a hesitant friendship begins between them with Mr Shiomi, becoming less bitter and finding a new appreciation for life.

Nami is not amused. Mr Shiomi's new found zest means he's no longer a "Solitarian" thanks to Su Yong's meddling. What's to be done about this state of affairs? One thing's for sure, Nami will not have anyone messing with her precious hobby or her viewed from afar subjects...

Grateful Dead is well, pretty great actually with it starting off like a typically quirky Japanese comedy before slowly but inexorably getting darker & darker until veering into outright horror territory toward the third act. However, it's really a (very effective) mixture of genres, combining comedy with drama and some social commentary to boot, before its demented conclusion.

A highly recommended little gem it should be sought out by any horror/genre fan or anyone who likes offbeat films in general.

A strong 8/10, just a highly satisfying and nicely demented (but not at all demented for the sake of it) film.

What a hoot, a delightful hoot. A neglected orphan grows up to be a serial stalker/killer. She stalks and studies a type. She studies what she has dubbed Solitarians, old people who live alone and wane away until they die alone.

Contrary to most it wasn't the violence/blood that shocked me. In fact, I was expecting more of that.

However, the film has issues trying to connect everything and to be consistent. Good acting, very interesting when the violence and gore is there, but disconnected sometimes. The first half was a bit boring, but interesting message about loneliness until the very end, which is great btw.