Review of Audition (2000) by Niklas S — 12 Sep 2009
This movie has the most sharp turn of any movie I have ever seen, period. This is not just one of the most disturbing movies ever; it is also one of the best-executed shocking movie climaxes ever put to screen. When I was recommended this movie by a friend he said, ?all I can say is that it is a romantic drama that loses its way and goes horribly wrong at the end?. Now having heard of Takashi Miike before and looking over some of his VAST (around 200 movies and he is still making more) catalogue, I knew that I should expect some thing next level messed up and I still wasn?t prepared for what came next.
The plot is very usual romantic fare in the beginning of the film. It has been seven years since the death of his beloved wife and Shigeharu Aoyama is a successful corporate executive who longs to find love again. A film producer friend of his suggests that they set up a fake audition for a film to help him find the perfect match. Aoyama is immediately drawn to an Asami who is a shy, soft voiced, yet at the same time confident young woman of 24. His producer friend warns him, saying that he has a bad feeling about her. He states that all of the names that she gave as references for her audition have mysteriously disappeared. He is so enthralled by both her inner and outer beauty that he pursues her anyways.
They go on several successful dates and she finally agrees to accompany him to hotel. Once they arrive Asami tells him about the sexual abuse that she lived through as a child and shows him her scars. She asks him to love her and only her and he agrees, then they make love. The next morning he wakes up and she is gone leaving no note behind. He franticly searches the city for her using her audition resume and believing her to be his one true love. At the end of the movie it turns from a love story to a horror movie instantly, the last 15 minutes of this film are incredibly hard to sit through. This is definitely one of the most well done shocking movies I have seen.
This review of Audition (2000) was written by Niklas S on 12 Sep 2009.
Audition has generally received positive reviews.
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