Japan Japan

This is definitely not a film for everyone and surely it is meant for people who like the more experimental, essayistic ironic approach to the medium. It's naughty and funny and sad in how it depicts the alienation of the hero from his surroundings but also from his dreamed-of culture. His "Japan" is not really Japan. It's mixed with other places, and it is shallow, like someone who is trying to draw a face he sees from the other side of a valley.

the movie is fun, fresh and sweet. the main character is absolutely adorable (i think i'm in love, gotta learn more about him), the photography and editing is great, the story is interesting (and convinces that a movie does not have to be in a dramatic structure). i loved the visual freedom the creators allowed themselves, i don't think it had any of a shock value, but only to portray the main character's world. i'd love to see the movie again, i'd be very pleased had it been longer (there were moments where we're lead to believe the film is over and i was always glad it didn't). i'd also love had they shown more porn, anime and yaoi. the movie inspired me, usually i escape from anything titled "documentary", i might just be a little more open minded next time after a film like that. :)

OK. first of all. i ask people to ignore the other comment since the person who wrote it said that he knew nothing about the movie before going to see it. beware. the film is very "unique". it is not for everyone. im not really surprised that people can really REALLY hate this movie. i saw it at a film festival in montréal and i felt kinda bad for the old couple sitting right next to me. it's very upfront (i.e. you can see excerpts of gay porn).

anyways, i don't wanna say much about it but i really liked how the film was made. its like a mash-up of all sorts of different styles. (i.e. at one point, you only see quoted white text on a black background.)(another part of the movie feels like a music video)(another part uses Google Earth and synchronizes the zoom-ins and zoom-outs to a song playing in the background).

it doesn't really respect any "structure". it goes from one medium to another. it's kinda amateur. it kinda looks like something you can do with iMovie. (it sometimes looks and feels like the movie Tarnation...minus the "real" drama).

all of these factors usually end up making a kinda hard-to-follow and "unfluid" movie. but in this case, it doesn't. all of the little effects the director uses in the movie aren't useless. instead of making it look like some sort of student-exercise, the effects end up helping the movie by making it better, fresher and funnier.

the aesthetics and the ambiance of the movie also reminds me of the music and the artwork of the sri-lankan singer/artist, M.I.A. (especially her Kala album): a mix of different styles and recycled bits that kinda look like it was made from scrap but ends up sounding/looking so refreshing/original/contemporary.

This is by far one of the worst movies I have ever seen in my entire life. The only reason I saw it was because I knew nothing about it except that it was called "Japan, Japan" and it was supposed to be about a guy who dreamed of going to Japan. How can you possibly go wrong with such a plot, I thought to myself. Well.. Someone managed to. First of all, if you're fan of Japan and its offerings like myself then don't think you'll be doing yourself any favors by watching this film. It has absolutely nothing to do with Japan. The only Japan related stuff you get to see is clips of Japanese homosexuals showering in each other's liquids... That's right. See, that's the thing. This "shock value" that so many directors are focusing on nowadays is painfully unoriginal and boring.. Please stop it, all of you! It didn't add anything to this movie and it never does! And FYI it wasn't rated as a movie for adults! I could have brought my cousin with me!

I'm so furious for having wasted 65 minutes of my life, watching this piece of crap, that I created a user account on here simply to warn people about it. It has no plot whatsoever, the storyline is.. Well there is no storyline. It's mostly about a depressed homosexual who doesn't know where his life is going (and I guess the director's not knowing where the story was going is reflected through that scenario somehow). The characters of this film are everything but interesting.. In fact I just sat there thinking to myself that I either wanted to recommend this film to people I hate or blow my brains out so I didn't have to endure this agony anymore. It seems to have been recorded on a cheap camcorder, the sound was awful, the picture quality awful... I don't know who shot it and I honestly don't care because that wasn't done properly either. And don't try telling me it was the director's wish for it to be raw like that. There's raw and then there's trash. 1/6th of the audience walked out. Me and my friend (who've never walked out on a film) thought we'd endure it for each other's sake, not knowing that we were both thinking the exact same thing.

You know.. If you like painful boredom that will suck the living soul out of your body, then this movie is for you. And furthermore, if you need a reason to convince yourself suicide is a good idea, then again, this is the film! I am genuinely MAD! However, I do see the positive side of having watched it. If someone close to me were to, I don't know, for example DIE then I can always think "Ugh, this sucks but at least not as much as that time I watched Japan Japan". Ahm yeah.. Not a very good film.

*ADDED* -> Just wanted to say that the other review on here is ridiculous. In no way was this film original.. What it was trying to do in order to be different ended up being what every other film maker is doing these days. It's a truly pathetic movie! Spare yourself the agony!

There are just too many freshman film experiments already out there. At this point you really do need something special under your belt to make another one work. And story DOES count when trying to tell a story, experimental or not. I'm a firm believer that you actually need to know what the rules are before you can go out break them with anything approaching creativity. This film has none of the above. Consequently it's about as interesting as watching random traffic pass through an intersection. Hey, if that's your poison, certainly watch the film. I guarantee that you WILL get what you're looking for. For the rest, I recommend that you just read the cover blurb and move on. Quickly.