Review of The Happiness of the Katakuris (2002) by Bill B — 26 Nov 2015
My first foray into Japanese cinema with a VERY strange film from 2001.
This is a combination of the genre's of horror, musical and comedy along with the Japanese language (with English subtitles of course!).
The film follows the Japanese Katakuri family who club together and open a guest house at the bottom of a picturesque mountain, very Sound of Music/Austrian in scenery.
The trouble is all the guesthouse fledging first bookings die!
It isn't a subject that causes laughter normally but in this film such events are followed by musical interludes that are more Mamma Mia than Prime Suspect.
The dead bodies are buried at the back of the property for good measure.
It gets better one of the departed is a grotesquely obese sumo wrestler.
I was so shocked by events I was veering towards the hideous awarding of one star but the musical last twenty minutes pushed my award up to two stars.
Japanese cinema doesn't get much air time on terrestrial television in the UK so I shall have to investigate further 'interesting' films from its repertoire.
This review of The Happiness of the Katakuris (2002) was written by Bill B on 26 Nov 2015.
The Happiness of the Katakuris has generally received positive reviews.
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