Bijitâ Q (2001) (V)

Director:

Takashi Miike

Writer:

Itaru Era (writer)

Release Date:

26 November 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

The only thing stranger than this family is... Visitor Q.

Plot:

A father, who is a failed former television reporter tries to mount a documentary about violence and sex among youths...

Plot Keywords:

Sex | Prostitute | Stranger | Television Reporter | Classmate

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

Ken'ichi Endô	...	Kiyoshi Yamazaki / Father
Shungiku Uchida	...	Keiko Yamazaki / Mother
Kazushi Watanabe	...	The visitor
Jun Mutô	...	Takuya Yamazaki / Son
Fujiko	...	Miki Yamazaki / Daughter
Shôko Nakahara	...	Asako Murata
Ikko Suzuki	...	Sasaoka

Also Known As:

Love Cinema Vol. 6 (International: English title) (series title)
Visitor Q (International: English title)
Visitor Q+ (USA) (reissue title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong aberrant sexual and violent content, language and drug use.

Runtime:

84 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color | Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Japan:R-18 | New Zealand:R18 (with restriction) | France:-16 | Germany:18 | USA:R | UK:18 | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Australia:R | Singapore:(Banned)

Company:

Alphaville

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: 25 minutes in, while Keiko is sitting at her desk, you can see other crew members and a boom mic in the left side mirror.

Quotes:

Kiyoshi Yamazaki: [as the bullies throw fireworks at the house] They're here! Everyone, can you see this? Can you see this?
[taping with camera]
Kiyoshi Yamazaki: This is my home! My home! Did you see that? The big strong bullies are here!
[pans to Keiko]
Kiyoshi Yamazaki: This is my wife! She's a lovely little wife! Dinner was delicious! This is...
[pans to the Visitor]
Kiyoshi Yamazaki: ... I don't know who this is, we're not acquainted! Watch! It's amazing, truly amazing! What a scene! It's unbelievable!
[going back to the fireworks, panning to knife in floor]
Kiyoshi Yamazaki: My wife threw this knife! Everyone, here it is!
[filming the chaos]
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Gokudô kyôfu dai-gekijô: Gozu (2003)

Actors or Prostitutes?

"Visitor Q" is an extraordinary motion picture. At first I was worried by the use of video as it normally seems cheap and crappy but then I noticed the angles that the director was employing and his abundant technique. A framed picture is a protagonist in one scene.

I had to avert my eyes at points. I have never liked needles. MIIKE seems to love them. The use of the hypodermic syringe was used brilliantly in his Motion Picture "Audition". A classic of modern Cinema in my opinion. The creativity in Visitor Q is boundless, slightly sick, I grant you, yet assured and beautifully acted. This is a strong film. The ideas are warped and execution is masterful.

TAKASHI MIIKE is a very talented filmmaker. He bears his soul with a project like "Visitor Q" and that is rare and brave. I mentioned acting earlier and find myself asking, "How far did these actors go?"

History has shown that the first actors were prostitutes. I sometimes wonder at the actors that walk the red carpet and ask, "What has changed?" Actors will do anything a director asks. This cast must have had great faith in their Director and great trust. The acting is faultless. At one point I did make the comparison with another great film "Man Bites Dog" because I found my self-laughing at situations so real and horrifying. That feeling is strange and I'm not sure I like it.

I cannot criticize this film in anyway. I still feel that the over use of video in Motion Pictures can be cheap and nasty lookin' but "Visitor Q" proves me wrong. Imagination overcomes any limitation.