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A Perfect Fake (Canada, 2004, Director: Marc De Guerre, 57 minutes): Ovid’s myth of Pygmalion forms the basis for this exploration of how technology is helping us design more and more convincing representations of human beings. Whether it’s CG movies, games, pornography, or latex “love dolls”, people (mostly men) are looking for other people (mostly women) that they can completely control. This is especially widespread in Japanese culture, where digital “characters” have become like pets or companions for many people, and not just children. One commentator states that since modern life is so unpredictable and communication so difficult, people are looking for companions who don’t change, who give them comfort. De Guerre enlists a number of academics to muse on the relationship between our desires and the implications of having a non-human representation to help us fulfill them.
We meet a few Japanese men who have taken things to an extreme, with one man showing off his collection of over forty love dolls in an apartment he rents especially for them. A few people found some of this stuff disturbing and a number of them walked out, but I think these extreme cases are only heralding the way our society may be headed. As dolls and computer software become more sophisticated, how many people will leave behind any attempt at human interaction whatsoever? It’s a bit creepy to consider, and the film conveyed that feeling very effectively.
(8/10)
Tagged as:
Documentaries,
Hot Docs,
japan,
sexuality
Rain (New Zealand/USA, 2000, Christine Jeffs, director) was a beautifully shot first feature, set at a beachfront cottage in New Zealand. Lots of melancholy, but also strangely disturbing close ups foreshadowing tragedy: soapy dishes being washed, a man cutting the lawn in his bare feet. Sort of a coming of age story, very moving. 8/10.
Japanese Devils (Japan, 2001, Minoru Matsui, director) was almost three hours long, but compelling all the way through. This documentary features the confessions of 14 Japanese soldiers, detailing their atrocities against the Chinese in the war that Japan waged for most of the thirties and forties. At times hard to listen to, it was nonetheless an exercise in bravery for these men to speak out when the overwhelming majority of soldiers did not. A deeply difficult film to get made and shown in Japan. 8/10
Tape (USA, 2001, Richard Linklater, director) was another film that dealt with the issue of confessing our sins. Ethan Hawke and Robert Sean Leonard play two old high school friends reunited in a seedy hotel room ten years later. One character coerces the other to confess to a rape he committed in high school, then informs him he has taped their conversation. It gets even more complicated when Uma Thurman, the victim, shows up. Shot in six days on digital video, the medium is used brilliantly to reinforce the seediness and claustrophobia of the setting, as well as the characters’ unstable relationships. Adapted by Stephen Belber from his play. 8/10
Tagged as:
japan,
newzealand
Waterboys (Japan, 2001, Shinobu Yaguchi, director) was another crowd pleaser. It follows five misfits who start a synchronized swimming team at their all-boys high school. Much hilarity ensues, including a flaming afro, some electrocuted dolphins, and a breathtaking Esther Williams-esque finale. Despite that, there are still some quirks about Japanese culture which elude me, so this rates 8/10.
Tagged as:
japan