Gokiburi-tachi no tasogare

Twilight of the Cockroaches is one of the strangest films I've seen in a while, and even though I only learned of its existence within the past week, I can't remember how exactly I stumbled across it. Still, it's not so obscure that it can't be found on YouTube, which - to be perfectly honest - sometimes feels like the only place to find older, lesser-known movies, outside of paying some obscene price for a second-hand DVD copy off Amazon.

This is a Japanese movie that mixes live-action footage with animation. Usually, it's animated characters with backgrounds that either are or simply look photorealistic, with some human characters appearing in live-action footage every now and then. The animated characters are all humanoid cockroaches, and the film's about their struggle to survive in an apartment that once had a peaceful occupant who let the cockroaches live alongside him, but circumstances change and the insects find themselves threatened.

It's not about to make me change my mind about cockroaches (anyone living in Australia will understand - they're a nightmare here), but I don't think that was the point. I'm pretty sure it's all an allegory for the Second World War, and how easily one side can dehumanize and obliterate the other. That might be a simplistic reading, but one of the genres this is tagged with is "family," so it may be a way to get that sort of anti-war message across to younger viewers. That being said, there are some bizarre moments and slightly edgy scenes that make this very much not feel like a family movie at times.

It's oddly paced and not always entirely engrossing, but it is pretty consistently interesting, and I appreciate how strange it is. It's probably good for Japanese animation fans who might feel like they've seen it all, but I could also see people getting turned off pretty quickly, due to the odd tone and strange premise. Definitely an engaging curiosity, if not quite a great movie.