This is a solid psycho-drama. Sometimes tough to watch, but it was worth it. The film revolves around a stalker who spies on his old crush in an increasingly invasive manner.
You've probably seen films with this kind of premise, ones where a family man/woman becomes a target of a creepy stalker who goes to extremes to fulfill whatever his twisted goal might be. In this case, however, the film's perspective is almost entirely shifted to the stalker, who is shown as a lonely, quiet guy with a troubling history, well the usual if it weren't for his voiceover and some flashbacks that deepen his character. Asato does a solid job of putting us in his shoes while not making him a sympathetic figure. We can empathize with his pain and loneliness, but we're also aware he might be a serious danger to the target of his "affection". Another detail that marks a welcome shift from the usual premise is the fact that Chihiro (the poor stalked girl) is married to a violent abuser, so vile that he poses an even bigger threat than the stalker.
I hope you get the idea of how uncomfortable all this might become for a leisurely evening watch. I personally love how some Japanese filmmakers don't pull their punches when it comes to violence or making the viewer observe unsavory characters doing even more unsavory deeds. Well, Asato sure fits into that category, but she could surely use a lighter hand in some more violent/exploitative scenes. She films it all while subjecting the sole female character to some really nasty domestic violence. However, it's not a big hit to the film's quality since Chihiro comes off as a sweet girl with just enough personality to avoid simply being an object of exploitation.
Overall, it is a solid psychological drama/thriller that does a good job of building suspense while subverting the audience's expectations. It could have been even better had it shown more subtlety and restraint, or been less bluntly obvious in a few scenes. Nonetheless, it's further proof that Asato is a capable genre director who could go places in the near future.
You've probably seen films with this kind of premise, ones where a family man/woman becomes a target of a creepy stalker who goes to extremes to fulfill whatever his twisted goal might be. In this case, however, the film's perspective is almost entirely shifted to the stalker, who is shown as a lonely, quiet guy with a troubling history, well the usual if it weren't for his voiceover and some flashbacks that deepen his character. Asato does a solid job of putting us in his shoes while not making him a sympathetic figure. We can empathize with his pain and loneliness, but we're also aware he might be a serious danger to the target of his "affection". Another detail that marks a welcome shift from the usual premise is the fact that Chihiro (the poor stalked girl) is married to a violent abuser, so vile that he poses an even bigger threat than the stalker.
I hope you get the idea of how uncomfortable all this might become for a leisurely evening watch. I personally love how some Japanese filmmakers don't pull their punches when it comes to violence or making the viewer observe unsavory characters doing even more unsavory deeds. Well, Asato sure fits into that category, but she could surely use a lighter hand in some more violent/exploitative scenes. She films it all while subjecting the sole female character to some really nasty domestic violence. However, it's not a big hit to the film's quality since Chihiro comes off as a sweet girl with just enough personality to avoid simply being an object of exploitation.
Overall, it is a solid psychological drama/thriller that does a good job of building suspense while subverting the audience's expectations. It could have been even better had it shown more subtlety and restraint, or been less bluntly obvious in a few scenes. Nonetheless, it's further proof that Asato is a capable genre director who could go places in the near future.
