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Pen-Ek Ratanaruang's wistful mood piece about loneliness, love, and despair
opens with a man dangling from a noose in a grey apartment clutching a
suicide note that reads: "This is bliss." It's an apt comment
on Last Life In The Universe, since this Thai/Japanese co-production proves
to be a blissfully unusual love story, starring Tadanobu Asano. He plays
Kenji, a Japanese bookworm living in Thailand, whose thoughts of suicide
lead him to fall in love with flighty Thai hostess Noi (Sinitta Boonyasak)
while being pursued by the yakuza.
No ditzy romance, this is as quirkily offbeat as you'd expect from the
man behind Thai musical Monrak Transitor. Following Kenji and Noi as they
struggle to cope with the aftermath of Noi's sister's suicide, this tranquil
drama hides a blackly comic take on the absurdity of the universe. Communicating
with each other in broken English, snatches of Thai, and the occasional
bit of Japanese, the two strangers gradually realise their own need for
love and understanding.
It may sound like a conventional tale, but this is full of magical surprises
that occasionally ruffle its otherwise serene surface. Delighting in the
unexpected, Ratanaruang delivers a series of strange moments; like the
Bedknobs And Broomsticks sequence in which a messy house tidies itself;
the crackers trio of yakuza hitmen (led by none other than Japanese director
Takashi Miike); and a main title credit that only appears on screen 40
minutes into the movie.
Anchoring the film's dreamily listless air of Eastern miserabilism and
comic absurdity is rising Japanese actor Tadanobu Asano (Ichi The Killer,
Zatoichi) who plays against type as the anal-retentive, depressive loner.
Capturing the awkward shyness of a man who's completely uncomfortable
in his own skin - yet hides a dark history that the yakuza tattoo on his
back only hints at - Asano delivers an enthralling performance of someone
who feels as though he is living the last life in the universe.
Review from BBCi
At nearly the mid-year mark, the film at the top of Filmbrain's 2004
list is Pen-Ek Ratanaruang's Last Life in the Universe. He's seen the
film four times now (once at the Tribeca Film Festival, other times on
DVD) and each subsequent viewing reveals more and more. Back in April,
Filmbrain received an email from Oliver at Pop Life, who had seen the
film at the San Francisco International Film Festival. In it, he said
that the film was what Lost in Translation was aiming for and missed.
Though the two films are far from identical, there is more than a bit
of truth in his statement.
Last Life in the Universe is set in Bangkok and centers on a Japanese
librarian named Kenji (Tadanobu Asano) who is obsessed with committing
suicide. Though living in a foreign country, he has done nothing to integrate
into the culture, and his entire life is spent between his job at a Japanese
library and his rather sterile apartment, which one character actually
mistakes for a library, given the mass amount of categorized books stacked
throughout. The lizard shown walking up his wall in the opening shot is
the only indicator of the locale.
Kenji's life is all about order. His shoes, socks, and underwear are filed
by day of the week, and his wardrobe consists of identical shirts and
trousers, with only slight variations in color. When an item is used in
his kitchen, it is immediately washed and put back in its place. He has
no friends or acquaintances in Bangkok, save for his older, matronly boss
who makes several failed attempts at inviting Kenji over to her place.
In his spare time he contemplates suicide, though we're never sure why.
Every attempt is thwarted at the last minute by some form of interruption.
In contrast to Kenji is Noi (Sinitta Boonyasak), a young Thai prostitute
who lives in a house that couldn't possibly be any messier. She's the
polar opposite of Kenji -- he's a stoic that reads, she gets high and
watches bad television. He's a man of few words who is endlessly polite,
while she is brash and direct. The two meet through an unfortunate circumstance,
and both their lives will be changed forever as a result.
By description alone, the film doesn't sound like much. (Thankfully, it
doesn't turn into a "hooker with a heart-of-gold saves suicidal man"
story.) The acting (particularly by Tadanobu Asano), combined with small
touches and subtleties (perhaps missed on first viewing) that Ratanaruang
and cinematographer Christopher Doyle bring to the film elevate it to
near-perfection status. Asano is one of the most versatile actors working
today. He was the blond gang member with the slit mouth in Takashi Miike's
Ichi the Killer, and most recently appeared as the samurai bodyguard in
Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi. (The Miike presence is strong -- not only is
an Ichi the Killer poster prominently displayed, but Miike himself turns
in a wonderfully comic performance as a Yakuza boss.)
Ratanaruang's direction is extremely controlled, and there's not a superfluous
word, gesture, or shot in the entire film. That the title credit doesn't
appear until thirty-five minutes into the film is no gimmick, but relevant
to the way the story unfolds. This is a film you sink into -- its meditative,
slow, lingering shots allow the images to tell the story as much as the
(minimal) dialog. The lizard on the wall, the rust stains on Noi's VW,
the knife in the kitchen -- all will take on multiple meanings and functions
throughout the film.
What Filmbrain loves about the film is how Kenji and Noi's relationship
evolves out of a third language. Given how they meet, the outcome would
no doubt be different had either one spoken the other's language. What's
left then is for the two of them to act on instinct, emotion, and broken
English. As a result, the two of them learn more about each other than
they would have under 'normal' conditions. It's a case of things found
through things missing. When Kenji first arrives at Noi's house, she rummages
through the mess and pulls out a Thai-Japanese language tape, which is
the only dialog heard for the next ten minutes. It's an interesting gesture,
even if its purpose isn't readily apparent. Is it for his benefit or hers,
or simply a replacement for a conversation they can't have? Though two
people communicating in a third language is nothing new, no other film
has approached it quite like this. Both are running away from something,
and they meet at a time where they each feel they are the last life in
the universe. The reason behind Kenji's quirky behavior in the first half
is beautifully revealed in the second, but through detail, not exposition.
The same holds true with Noi's character development. One could argue
that the film has a Buddhist-like quality, with its seemingly fate-driven
circumstances.
Christopher Doyle's cinematography is, as always, beyond beautiful. It
rivals his best work, including the gorgeous In the Mood for Love (which
somewhat explains the Wong Kar-wai-ness of the film.) The score by Hua-Lampong
Riddim (used generously throughout) is haunting and lush and greatly adds
to the mood of the film. (The CD is well worth tracking down.)
While it is possible to make comparisons with Lost in Translation, it's
clear that the director's intent was different. Sophia was a stranger
in a strange land, whereas Ratanaruang (at home with Bangkok) is more
interested in revealing a slice of Thai life not often depicted in films.
Unlike Kenji and Noi, what unites Bob and Charlotte is more circumstantial
than coincidental. Still, the focus in both films is on an unlikely relationship
that exhibits restraint, so comparisons are inevitable.
With its blend of drama and dark comedy, Last Life in the Universe is
a film that can easily be viewed multiple times. The interplay between
Tadanobu Asano and Sinitta Boonyasak is so perfect that it's hard to believe
this is her first film.
Review from www.filmbrain.typepad.com
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