Abroad in Japan LIVE Show Tomorrow | **FILM FRIDAY** Audition (1999) (Patreon)

So before I get into Film Friday folks, I just wanted to let you know that there’ll be a live show on the Abroad Perspective channel tomorrow!

This year I've successfully gotten over my fear of doing public live shows once and for all, thanks to the Sapporo trip and my bizarre 30th birthday. And so this weekend, I thought I’d put myself on the spot once more and do a live show themed around 7/11 food.

I'll be eating a reasonably priced 7/11 dinner while answering questions sent in by viewers, whilst also revealing my stylish new face mask and a spectacular diorama I recently snapped up to use in an upcoming video.

Should be a lot of fun guys and I hope you can make it tomorrow.
(And of course as always, this won’t affect next week’s Patreon live show).

Excellent stuff, and now it’s time to ruin your weekend with this week’s gruesome film.

AUDITION (1999, Miike)
One of the most iconic horror films in Japanese cinema, from acclaimed director Takashi Miike.

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS: Audition is a disturbing Japanese horror film that follows Aoyama (Ryo Ishibashi), a widower who’s encouraged to start dating again by his son. Aided by a film-producer friend (Jun Kunimura), Aoyama uses auditions for a fake production to function as a dating service. When Aoyama becomes intrigued by the withdrawn, gorgeous Asami (Eihi Shiina), they begin a relationship. However, as they begin to date, her dark past begins to affect their relationship, leading to a harrowing climax.

ABROAD IN JAPAN REVIEW: It’s not often that a film can temporarily put me off dating and hastily cause me to delete Tinder from my phone. And yet “Audition” did just that, after first viewing it soon after I moved to Japan.

One of my English teaching colleagues from an exotic country known only as “Australia” had a few of us round for a gathering - a night of drinks, poker, laughter and Audition. 

Now I've never seen the point of watching a Horror film in a group, as it often ruins the immersive experience having someone cough, open a can of beer, or munch on a pile of snacks as you’re midway through a scene. 

Yet impressively, despite the six of us being crammed into a small tatami mat room the size of a broom cupboard, barely anyone made a sound throughout, as we were all so engrossed by the film. 

(Actually that’s a lie. There were a couple of scenes where we swore out loud in disgust).

I’ll come clean and say I’m no fan of horror films; partly because I’ve seen too many bad ones that put me off the genre, and partly because there’s little satisfaction spending two hours watching dislikable characters being butchered in increasingly gruesome and elaborate ways, against the backdrop of a predictable storyline.

Above all, I find most horror films never dedicate enough time to creating richly drawn characters, who you feel invested in, before the zombie bursts in and suddenly rips off their face. And at the end of the day, if you can’t sympathise with the characters or their motives or care for who they are, then their swift, inevitable demise ultimately feels empty and unsatisfying.

The genius of Audition is that it dedicates almost the entire first half of the film getting to know the main character Aoyama and his son, ratcheting up the tension along the way.

The story is initially slow and starts out feeling like a slightly awkward romantic comedy; the change in tone occurring so gradually it’s akin to being boiled alive slowly in a pan of hot water, as the underwhelming restaurant dates begin to descend into uncomfortable psychological horror.

Aoyama, “the hero” of the film, may seem like a good man, but his creepy Auditions to find a girlfriend are murky and dubious in their execution. And despite the horrendous acts Asami commits, some viewers may find sympathy for her given the traumatic childhood past she's had to endure. The film does an excellent job humanising both characters and fleshing out (oh god, bad choice of words) - fleshing out their backstories and making you feel invested in understanding their motivations.

It makes the dramatic events in the second half of the film all the more unpleasant but powerful to behold as they unfold on screen.

Audition is a film I’ve frequently returned to - not particularly for fun - but to remind myself what a good horror film should be. Richly drawn characters, in an uncomfortable setting, with an impending sense of dread and shocking and disturbing scenes that’ll remain unforgivably ingrained in your memory for years to come.

Even if there are long segments where you might not be facing the screen, it’s an essential viewing experience that you won’t forget.

****

As always folks, I’d recommend watching the film in high quality on Amazon, iTunes or Google Play. However, it appears somebody recently uploaded Audition to Youtube, albeit with subtitles in Malaysian. The quality isn’t great and the subtitles are a distraction but it’s viewable: https://youtu.be/7o-y9HFSUcE