The beauty is a beast

>> Audition is a kinky, Japanese cousin to Cronenberg

by MATTHEW HAYS

What would outsiders think of Canadians if they judged us by the films our country produces? If they were to go by David Cronenberg's oeuvre, for example, they would think we have sex with cars and enjoy penetrating other people's wounds (Crash) or have mysterious growths sprouting out of us (Shivers, The Brood). Most onlookers have tended to look at the bizarre sexual-themed films that come out of Canada as manifestations of a repressive culture.

And that makes Audition, a serious twister of a film from Japan, an indication that that country shares something in common with a Canadian sensibility. Expertly directed by Miike Takashi, the film has a streak of nastiness running through it, spotted with strangely erotic moments.

The film begins as a lonely widower (played by Japanese rock musician-cum-actor Ryo Ishibashi) decides he must, after years of mourning, move on and find a new mate. Using his position as a TV exec to his advantage, Ishibashi holds auditions for the lead in a new movie. A montage sequence reveals a broad range of desperate young things all eager to star, from the banal to the crazy. The last one turns up a charm (played by model-cum-actor Eihi Shiina) and Ishibashi is utterly infatuated, a sense that's only heightened after they go out for dinner.

Then things get really, really creepy, and Audition takes an unexpected turn for the grotesque. Shiina has an horrific secret, lying tied up in a sack in her apartment: the dismembered body of a man she has taken revenge upon. He's still alive, it seems, and thus the bag bounces about the apartment floor every now and then. Miike then cuts to flashbacks of the two playing various mindgames with each other. It's Extreme S&M--the squeamish need not attend--as needles are stuck in his eyes, his tongue is sliced, and piano wires are used in very imaginative ways. These entirely realistically rendered scenes are bound to leave you in grave discomfort, squirming in your seat in empathy--especially the dismemberment sequence.

Based on the bestselling novel by Ryu Murakami, Audition takes yet another unexpected turn in its final moments, concluding in a way that shouldn't ever be revealed to an audience. Audition will undoubtedly appeal to those of a certain taste. Fantasia buffs and Cronenberg freaks, take note.

Audition opens Friday, May 17 at Cinéma du Parc