Kumiko is a droll and often disengaged work. Taking it's central idea from a media misstep on a true story Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter takes a path of solitude and contemplation. It's not often that a film is so rudimentary in it's storytelling while being so proficient in setting it's world and reeling you into it. Kumiko is anchored by a great performance from Rinko Kikuchi. One that often treads the line of stoicism while being peppered with flashes of perfect comedic timing and emotional unrest. A difficult performance to hold down, and Kikuchi does so, at times, masterfully.
In Kumiko we are shown time and time again how mundane and unfulfilled her life has become. Kumiko needs something. Some sense of purpose. An adventure. She finds this in her belief that she can recover the buried money, or treasure, from the film Fargo. A truly preposterous starting off point for a story and one that could only be from a misunderstood quote from a real life event. Yes, the basis for this film is indeed rooted in reality. Albeit a misconstrued footnote from the tragic life of Takako Konishi.
Director David Zellner leads this film with great aplomb. His pacing is painstakingly slow though it is very much so deliberate. He lulls the viewer into a state of near boredom to drive home the mundane life Kumiko is enduring. His pairing with cinematographer Sean Porter could very well result in a masterwork in the near future. The two of them lens this film to perfection. Every shot is a gorgeous wonder to look at. Kumiko is often center frame on full display for all to see. This is important as she is a nobody in her life, yet here on this journey of her's she is the subject of interest. Their positioning of her here is quite brilliant. The snow riddled landscapes of Minnesota and North Dakota are beautifully majestic as the backdrop of Kumiko's treasure hunt.
Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter is a bizarre, haunting, darkly comedic, and powerful journey of a troubled individual looking to up the ante on the flop out of a poor hand having been dealt by life. Gorgeously shot and brilliantly performed by it's lead this sure to be polarizing film is an experience to behold. It's creeping pace will offset some, but ultimately there is more than enough here to make it's duration worth your while. 8/10.
