Monday, February 18, 2013

A Japanese Export Besides Manga

All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001)

Written by guest blogger HalfHindu

Sometimes, when you’re at a particular time in your life, in a particular state - certain movies can speak to you. It may literally seem to have been made for you. They resonate with you, they can strike a chord with you, making all your emotions rush forth like caged demons, rush forth into blinding clarity. Some movies can help you understand yourself.


That’s what happened with the movie All About Lily Chou-Chou and I this year.

Released in 2001,directed by the amazingly talented Shunji Iwai ,All About Lily Chou-Chou is a Japanese film dealing with the beautiful intricacies lives of a couple of teenagers growing up in the industrial/technological haze of culture and all-permeating media that was the 1990s.

It is a confusing movie. It’s one of the most confusing movies in the (rather small) list of movies I've ever watched. Featuring a discontinuous story line and jarring cuts between scenes, it may be difficult to make out what is going on, but in the end, it is worth it. Oh so worth it. Or maybe it’s just me.


The scenes are frequented by white-on-black text - messages on a BBS board, which really brought out the nostalgia. I haven’t used a BBS board in years.

It also explores music as escapism, which is all it really is. “The Ether heals your pain.”

The movie riddled with shots of unimaginably poignant serenity, those were what really spoke to me. They had me sitting slack-jawed in front of my monitor, Time stopped and for a moment all that existed was a terrible sadness. Words can’t describe the base, visceral reaction I get from the last scene - with all the characters in the rice fields together, CD players in hand. As if nothing ever happened. As if everything was normal.

The film employ’s a brilliant soundtrack which no doubt was a key factor in evoking such emotion. Piano music always will.

I’m not pigeonholing it as a depressing drama. It is so much more. It is the stark representation of life that is so rare in cinema lately. It was a beautiful experience.

Or maybe it’s just me.

  













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