• May 23
• Sion Sono’s HIMIZU: Theatrical review
• Posted by Deljhp - 23/05/12 at 05:34 PM

Director: Sion Sono. Review: Adam Wing.

If you thought Sion Sono might fancy a change of pace after disturbing the world with the likes of Cold Fish and Guilty of Romance you’ve got it all wrong. Himizu starts life as a teen romance but soon descends into bitterness, violence and madness. Sono had just finished adapting the hugely popular manga ‘Himizu’ into a screenplay when the largest earthquake in recorded history struck the coast of Japan. He put the project on hold to help with the volunteer effort in Fukushima, and as a result, changed the setting of his story in order to show the world what happened.

Sumida (Shota Sometani) and his schoolmate Chazawa (Fumi Nikaido) are 15-year-old school kids living a dystopian existence. Sumida wants to live an ordinary life ‘quietly like a mole’, and Chazawa dreams of living with the man she loves, believing that they’ll protect each other from the world outside. Which would be fine if their useless parents didn’t keep getting in the way. Sumida’s father (Ken Mitsuishi) keeps coming round for a quick fix of cash - he’s an abusive drunk who beats on his son and wants him dead so that he can claim the insurance. Sumida’s mother isn’t much better; she runs away with another man and leaves her son to deal with the fallout...Continue review here.

Himizu trailer