Wacky maki

More weird stuff from Japan at Fantasia

by RUPERT BOTTENBERG

I.K.U.'s just one of any number of intensely bizarre Japanese films, both long and short, to be caught before Fantasia finishes up. Highly recommended is Uzumaki, a unique slice of surreal horror playing Sunday, July 23. It's a respectful adaptation of the Junji Ito manga--no small feat considering how distorted Junji's demented worldview is. There's no point trying to explain what goes on in this twisted tale of malevolent geometric forms. Just take my word and go be freaked out.

As I stated last week, Takashi Miike's Dead or Alive is unmissable as well (it follows Uzumaki on Sunday night). The pacing is full-throttle cocaine heart-attack overdrive, a mile-a-minute headlong charge through the garish, ultraviolent underbelly of the Tokyo nightlife. Pitting a savage Yakuza gang leader against an equally morally bankrupt cop, the film's a non-stop merry-go-round of raw sex, hard drugs, brutal gunplay and evil, sleazy laughs. I haven't seen Audition, Miike's other contribution this year, but if DoA and Fudoh (the '97 flick that blew Miike wide open) are any indication, it's worth catching on July 30.

In the blink-and-you'll-miss-'em department, there's several Japanese animated shorts that gotta be seen. Preceding the experimental film Experimental Film on Thursday, July 27, are several out-there shorts, including the amazing Satisfaction Real. Driven by a propulsive funk-rock track, this six-minute sexbomb uses actual people as props in wet dream of industrial chic.

Preceding Blood: The Last Vampire on July 28 and 30 are several animated clips, including Tokitama Hustle, the latest from the director of Noiseman Sound Insect, which blew anime fans away when it screened at Fantasia two years ago. This new one's an incredible fusion of computer and trad animation, but seems to hint at a larger project. There's also Heavy Rotation, a circular, wordless fable of predatory teddy bears and their evil machine. Although deceptively simple with its black-and-white contour line design, this is an impressive piece of work. Both shorts come from the Trilogy Corp., a Japanese animation studio to expect great things from. :