When a single mother suffers a nervous breakdown, she is suspected of child abuse and her child is taken away. Her mental suffering escalates as she succumbs to her darkest fantasies.
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Title: Kotoko (2011)
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| Credited cast: | |||
| Shin'ya Tsukamoto | ... | Seitaro Tanaka | |
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Yûko Nakamura | ||
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Cocco | ... | Kotoko |
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En Matayoshi | ... | (as Hiroshi Matayoshi) |
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Sawako Makishi | ||
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Eiichi Takahashi | ||
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Nami Inoue | ||
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Shinji Takakusa | ||
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Masaharu Seki | ||
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Kôji Wakuta | ||
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Makoto Takakusa | ||
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Kyômi Yamamoto | ||
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Mika Nakamura | ||
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Tatsumi Ômura | ||
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Shintai Kakazu | ||
The story of a single mother who suffers from double vision; caring for her baby is a nerve-wrecking task that eventually leads her to a nervous breakdown. She is suspected of being a child abuser when things get out of control and her baby is taken away. Written by Anonymous
With all the praise and good reviews I had encountered for this movie, I was sort of excited and hyped up to actually get to watch it. And it was with a certain amount of excitement when it finally arrived from Amazon and I popped it into the DVD player.
And now having seen "Kotoko", I sit here somewhat disillusioned. On one hand, the movie was rather good and enjoyable, but at the same time it was a disappointment and a lousy experience.
Let's start with the good parts there is to the movie. The acting in the movie was quite good, especially the performance put on by Cocco (playing Kotoko). She really impressed me greatly in this movie, and her portrayal of a woman with these deeply rooted problems and issues was really moving and impressive. And she really carried the movie on her shoulders so nicely.
The story itself is also one of the better parts of the movie, as it is a story that is deeply disturbing, but also a magnificent journey into the downward spiralling psyche of a woman with debilitating mental problems.
That being said, then it should also be said that the movie is severely flawed and dragged down by some questionable and shoddy camera work. Throughout great parts of the movie, the camera was shaking and all over the place. Yeah, it did add an element of confusion and incoherency to heighten Kotoko's distorted view of the world around her. But for us in the audience, it was a nuisance and a moment of irritation. I don't pay money to watch a movie shot in a way that makes it look like something I could do myself with my own hand-held camera.
The movie has some really beautiful moments, just as it does have some really disturbing and painful moments. There are some rather graphic images and visuals that may not be suitable for every one in the audience, and thus the 18 years of age label on the cover. But still, there are some issues in the movie that does raise eyebrows.
"Kotoko" is a beautiful and yet ugly movie at the same time. But it just doesn't really manage to stand out in the Japanese market of movies, and as hard as director Shin'ya Tsukamoto tries, then Takashi Miike has done something fairly similar, just pulled off in a better way.
If you enjoy movies that deal with the problems of the human psyche and the downward spiral of mental stability, then you might want to check out "Kotoko". It should be chiseled out once again, that Cocco was really the one making this movie watchable.
I am rating "Kotoko" a 6 out of 10, mostly because of Cocco's performance, but also because the movie does have some strong, solid moments. But in overall, it just didn't manage to fully stand out on its own from many other movies on the market.