Screen/Society--Cine-East: East Asian Cinema (Japan)--"Why Don't You Play in Hell?"

Thursday, March 3, 2016 - 2:00pm to 4:30pm
Screen/Society--Cine-East: East Asian Cinema (Japan)--"Why Don't You Play in Hell?"

Film Screening:

Why Don't You Play in Hell

(Shion Sono, 2013, 129 min, Japan, in Japanese w/ English subtitles, Color, Blu-Ray)

-- Introduced by Prof. Leo Ching (AMES)

 

 

Ten years ago, the Kitagawa yakuza clan attacked the Muto yakuza clan at Muto's own home, only to have Muto's wife fight back. This unexpectedly left the Kitagawa clan in shambles, with their top hitman Ikegmai wounded and Muto's wife in prison. Despite the carnage, the most unfortunate fallout from this attack is when Muto's beloved daughter, Mitsuko, has her adorable toothpaste commercial taken off the air. Now, Ikegami seeks revenge, while Muto only has one desire: to have his wife return from prison to see Mitsuko star in her first movie.

Enter "The Fuck Bombers", an eager but untalented group of wannabe filmmakers whose dreams of making movies have come crashing down after ten years. Circumstances have brought them to this fateful moment where they'll be able to film the climactic battle between yakuzas in an epic, over-the-top ending for the ages.

Described by Sono as "an action film about the love of 35mm," and based on a screenplay he wrote nearly 15 years ago, Why Don't You Play In Hell is among Sono's best works as his trademark excess and outrageousness is infused with an affection for the Japanese films that have come before it.

"A blood-soaked gang saga that builds to a madcap battle royal." -- Wall Street Journal

Cost: Free and open to the public

Sponsors: The Asian/Pacific Studies Institute (APSI), the Program in the Arts of the Moving Image (AMI), and the Department of Asian & Middle Eastern Studies (AMES)

White 107 (White Lecture Hall)