Katakuri-ke no kA´fuku (2001)

With my family, I know I'll grow up to be really cool

A woman is eating soup when she finds a strange object in her soup -- a curly-headed pixie who becomes enamored of her uvula and steals it. Thus begins a weird claymation sequence involving ghastly rag dolls, snakes, killer crows, and more pixies.

This one scene alone tells you just what kind of movie "The Happiness of the Katakuris" is, and whether you're going to like it. Takashi Miike -- well known for gruesome action movies -- is pretty obviously having a ball as he tells the colorful, chaotic story of a singing family and the people who have the misfortune to visit their hotel. Zombies, random musical numbers, and family strife are all here in abundance.

The Katakuri family is made up of four generations of family, criminal activity, and general hopelessness -- the only one currently immune is the little granddaughter.

And things are not improved when the head of the family Masao (Kenji Sawada) is laid off from his job. So he purchases a remote hotel, after being told that a major road is going to be run nearby. But nobody checks in until one rainy night, when a strange man appears -- and then stabs himself on a sharpened keychain. Cue the Japanese techno and dance number!

Terrified that the suicide will ruin their reputation, the Katakuris surreptitiously bury the man in the woods -- only to have more guests die in bizarre ways, and end up buried in the woods. Oh yeah, and Shizue's (Naomi Nishida) new boyfriend is a criminal. As a typhoon approaches and their secret burials are threatened with discovery, can this family of failures pull it together -- or will everything blow up in their faces?

I have to say that Takashi Miike -- famous for the graphic and horrific "Ichi the Killer" -- is not the first person I'd have chosen for a black-comedy/musical about a family running an ill-fated hotel. Especially since I have a special fondness for the Korean movie it remakes, "The Quiet Family." But Miike's work on this is nothing short of brilliant -- a comedy of increasingly grotesque errors, leading up to a literally explosive finale.

A lot of its charm is that Miike does not let his style be constrained by logic -- there are wild random musical numbers, claymation interludes, disco balls, wacky spiritualists, and a flying conman who claims to be the Queen's secret nephew ("Diana! If only I was there!"). He shows no restraint at all, even climaxing the film in a crazy scene where the fear-addled Katakuris -- who are trying to re-bury those troublesome corpses -- do a carefree song-and-dance scene with a bunch of zombies. It has to be seen to be believed.

And it's really funny too. While the plot starts at a rather relaxed pace (excluding the uvula-stealing pixies), Miike cranks up the absurdity with plenty of lowbrow humor (a sumo wrestler dies during sex, and crushes his girlfriend), gore, and a general feeling of surreality. Things just get more hysterical and desperate for the poor Katakuris, and Miike never gives them a break ("Maybe we should prepare for the worst," one of them says when a guest solemnly requests some cord).

Surprisingly for a black comedy, the characters are rather likable, if pathetic -- the dad and mom are just trying to keep the hotel afloat while proclaiming love to each other. Tetsuro Tamba's lovable old grandpa is just trying to keep his family safe when he isn't killing crows and assaulting suitors. Nishida is also quite good as an eternally desperate divorcee, who is almost superhumanly gullible when it comes to men.

"The Happiness of the Katakuris" is a perfect example of a black comedy -- warped, wild, wacky, and full of clay pixies and singing zombies. Now if only somebody could get Peter Jackson to remake this puppy... August 21, 2008

I love this crazy movie

Takashi Miike pulls off a hit with this one. Its a crazy good time of a movie with loads of laughs! If your new to Takahsi Miike, you definitely want to go with this one, because this is one of his best. March 23, 2008

Bizarre musical comedy

Masao Katakuri (Kenji Sawada) buys an inn and recruits his family (Keiko Matsuzaka, Shinji Takeda, Naomi Nishida & Tetsuro Tamba)to help him run it. Unfortunately, there are few guests and those that do come tend to die before they leave. Worried about the bad reputation they might get, the family buries the bodies in the nearby forest.

Sound dreary and depressing? It's not, due to the bizarrely cheerful musical numbers and the plucky charm of this family that is determined to do its best and keep trying no matter what opposes them. Director Takashi Miike makes a virtue of the film's low budget by filming the action and special effects sequences in claymation. The cast is terrific, including Kiyoshiro Imawano, who gives a hilarious performance as a con man impersonating a Japanese American on leave from the Gulf War.
October 28, 2007

Somewhat disappointing feature by Miike

Takashi Miike is known for having made zillions of movies: he films several movies a year, almost all genre films. As a result, he has developed quite a cult reputation. I have seen only two of his films - Audition (probably his most famous film, and one I found to be thoroughly repulsive) and this one. I found Katakuris to be a mixed bag: this combination of a musical with a terror flick - with "The Sound of Music" added just for the heck of it - just doesn't work very well. If it sounds like a bad mix, it is. There are only a few redeeming features that makes it worth watching - two musical numbers, in particular - one at the end, and the other at the middle called In Love. The other redeeming feature is the presence of Naomi Nishida, an actress I found fascinating since I saw her in My Secret Cache some years ago. She was also in Godzilla 2000, and has a very small role in Swing Girls, a wonderful movie I hope soon becomes available in Amazon. March 26, 2007

Tagline: "The hills are alive with the sound of screaming"

Bizarrely brilliant!!

Ever wanted to see a beautiful woman have her palatine-uvula torn from her pretty throat by a winged-imp? Ever wanted to see this happen NOT because the imp is demonic, but because he is infatuated with uvulas? (As in, has little hearts in his eyes when he spies one?) Yeah, we've all been there . . .

Miike's film is completely unpredictable . . . unless, of course, you typically watch films where the undead sing back-up in "awkward" musical sequences AND stuffed animals spring to life to murder pesky crows. (You must have BOTH to qualify for a "yes" answer!!)

The cinematography is simply gorgeous!! Miike did not skimp on the film stock; it is a perfect match for his subject!! The high-contrast is beautiful . . . and enhances the surreal elements of Miike's art.

As for surrealism . . . between the claymation, the musical sequences, the karaoke fantasies ("Everybody sing along!"), the dancing corpses, and the stilted dialog, there is something for everyone;)

Not only does this piece demonstrate Miike's range, but it underscores how mundane Western film has become!! I'll let (pretentious but uneducated) folks rave over Little Miss Sunshine all they want (including the Academy). In the meantime, I'll continue adding to my Japanese collection!
January 28, 2007

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