Kagerô-za (1981)

Kagerô-za: Directed by Seijun Suzuki. With Yûsaku Matsuda, Michiyo Yasuda, Mariko Kaga, Katsuo Nakamura. A 1920s playwright meets a beautiful woman who may be the ghost of his patron’s deceased wife.

“Suzuki makes havoc with the narrative in this second installment of his Taisho films. A man endures a jumble of back-stories involving intrigue and mystery surrounding the woman (or women) of his desire, the movie shifting from one nonsensical cliche and plot to another. The woman is married, then sheu0026#39;s a secret lover of his boss, then sheu0026#39;s a ghost, then sheu0026#39;s part of a conspiracy, then sheu0026#39;s in a suicide pact, then she is murdered, etc. Scenes segue from one to another without rhyme or reason, scenery changes without warning, characters appear in different places or perform different roles, and in between, absurd scenes of dream-logic, slapstick, stylish visual sets, or surrealism pass the time until the next pulp drama. And then the movie suddenly explores a strange performance, or a bizarre ritual involving peering into the underside of statues to reveal poetic statements of self or genitalia. During a childrenu0026#39;s play, the audience ask u0026quot;whatu0026#39;s the plot?u0026quot; and the answer is u0026quot;I donu0026#39;t know, the children improviseu0026quot;. A very tediously confusing and unrewarding movie, and too chaotic in style to be a dream. I can appreciate the visuals but I must confess I didnu0026#39;t enjoy this whimsical artsy randomness much.”