Stometer Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Ketrivie It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

Doomtomylo a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

Melanie Bouvet The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

dbborroughs From the director of the Tetsuo the Iron Man films (which are okay, but over hyped, I mean we don't need three) nd some greatly under appreciated films no one talks about (Gemini and Snake of June among others) comes a new series. The sequel to this is playing Japan Cuts this year. Its the story of a man with the ability to go into peoples dreams.He doesn't like it since it poses all sorts of problems for him and the person dreaming. He reluctantly begins to help a cop try and solve what appears to be a series of murders of people being killed in their dreams. The killer is a person called O who also can enter peoples dreams.I like the concept but the film feels like a low budget TV movie or part of a series with these tight closeups and odd visual choices that scream TV production. The film mostly deals with the female cop who is trying to solve the crimes and who is cold and the sort of person who doesn't have issues rather she has volumes. The character of the Nightmare Detective is great he's the right sort of combination of traits so we really like him even if we don't know much about him.Worth a rental. (I've read the second film is better so I'm looking forward to that)

Scarecrow-88 A socially inert, icy detective, Keiko Kirishima(Hitomi)working on her first assignment, recently, by request, sent to the streets after working at a desk, finds the task of finding the mystery behind a rash of mysterious suicides quite demanding. It seems that those who commit suicide, in such a gruesome manner with whatever sharp object is available to them, are in a state of nightmarish sleep influenced by another to enact destruction upon themselves. Seeing that these aren't ordinary investigations, Keiko and partner Wakamiya(Masanobu Ando)are to find a psychic of some sort who can aid them in uncovering the predator who preys on victims with a suicidal desire to end their sad, seemingly unimportant lives in a crappy world. It seems that the dead victims, under suspicious means, communicated with someone merely identifying himself as O(..director Shinya Tsukamoto, in another one of his many strange supporting roles). O, it seems, somehow hypnotically controls those on the opposite end of the phone and Keiko decides that she'll need the help of an infamous "nightmare detective"(Ryuhei Matsuda)who can enter dreams to assist those under duress by whatever is plaguing the restless sleep of victims. Keiko will voluntarily call O in a desperate attempt to stop his murderous reign, facing the horrifying consequences as he exposes her own mental/emotional problems. Despite a reluctant resistance & fear, the nightmare detective will assist Keiko in trying to find and stop O.Part police procedural, part psychological thriller, with a little Nightmare on Elm Street mixed in, leave it to director Tsukamoto to make it all come together. Like the best psychological thrillers, we get an understanding as to why the killer is committing such evil deeds, and the frailties of those whose job it is to catch them. Through the killer, the emotionally fragile detective(..and our nightmare detective)faces the inner demons that haunt her. In other words, through the ordeal of this killer invading her vulnerable dream state, she must find strength with the help of her telepathic avenger, the only one who can truly stop the madman, to face the knife-wielding hunk of monstrous flesh which briskly moves at it's victims. We also see through the eyes of our nightmare detective..the inner thoughts of others which yield ugly revelations, the dream of a catatonic he's supposed to save, how he "travels" into the dreams of others, and how he indeed can alter the path of the killer(..first stopping it momentarily from attacking Wakamiya who calls O with tragic results, and how he assists Keiko whose seemingly trapped in an enclosed room with little wiggle-room to move)with possible harm/death to himself. We also see what happens to several victims who communicate with O and the nightmarish plane for which he operates and the grisly, bloody results. And, indeed we get a showdown between the nightmare detective and the killer as we learn what may've formed them into the men they've become. My only real complaint was the camera work which is the newly adopted steady-cam style where everything's always moving frantically. AS with most of Tsukamoto's work, this could be a bit difficult and challenging for many viewers. I think the most present theme in the film is the will to live when life seems the most empty, and the terrain explored of why we are the way we are and the certain situations from the past that have shaped us into the human beings we have become. The three main leads, the emotionally vacant Keiko, the numb & sad nightmare detective tired of a gift which has been more of a burden, and the killer whose hunger for human flesh(..the monster that represents him in the nightmares that entreat upon victims, "assisting" them in an act they supposedly desired to commit)derives from a desire to at first die by his own hand due to a horrifying traumatic experience as a child(..seeing this in a flashback when the nightmare detective "opens" his mind, which also answers the mysterious girl's voice asking for help)leads to the deaths of many who were to kill themselves with him in a suicide pact across the phone.SPOILER:This could very well be the first time I've seen a killer actually murder others with a cell phone in a catatonic state

jmaruyama Tsukamoto Shinya is one of a small group of influential Japanese directors who formed the vanguard of Japan's "New Wave" cinema during the late 80s (along with animation director Otomo Katsuhiro and splatter horror director Ikeda Toshiharu). His dark and creepy "Tetsuro: The Iron Man" paved the way for such future unconventional directors like Miike Takashi (Koroshi No Ichi), Fukui Shozin (964 Pinocchio), Shu Lea Cheang (I.K.U.) and Nakata Hideo (Ring).Like his American contemporaries David Lynch and David Cronenberg, Tsukamoto's movies delved into the realm of bizarre nightmare fantasies often involving human metamorphosis, the melding of man and machine, abnormal human anatomy/psychology and degenerative disease.While in recent years, Tsukamoto has been more involved in front of the camera as an actor, his latest film "Akumu Tantei AKA Nightmare Detective" is an attempt to return to the type of film making that made him a cult favorite."Akumei Tantei" revolves around the exploits of a mysterious dark cloaked stranger, Kagenuma Kyoichi portrayed with gloomy indifference by Matsuda Ryuhei (Renai Shashin, Nana) who somehow has the supernatural ability to enter into other people's dreams (more often nightmares) in order to help the individual make sense of the dream. While not a true "detective" per se, he often reluctantly offers out his unique investigative skills to others. An unfortunate side effect of his abilities is that he is able to hear the subconscious voices of those in his immediate vicinity and also sometimes brings his own nightmares into the real world (which at points drives him suicidal). His services soon come to the attention of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's homicide division who are investigating a bizarre series of murder/suicides and recruit Kagenuma in the hopes that he may be able to use his abilities to uncover clues to the identity of the killer.Unfortunately, Kagenuma and beautiful detective Kirishima Keiko (played by sensual J-Pop idol singer "hitomi") soon discover that the killer shares Kagenuma's ability to enter people's dreams and uses this ability to manipulate his victims into killing themselves. Can Kagenuma and Kirishima stop this killer before he strikes again?As others have mentioned, "Akumei Tantei" is one part "Nightmare on Elm Street" and "Dreamscape" and one part "Ghost Whisperer" with elements of the recent "Paprika" thrown in for good measure.Surprisingly, "Akumu Tantei" isn't as bloody as I was expecting. While there is plenty of gore and blood to be sure, it is nowhere near as bad as some of the recent Hollywood "torture porn" films that have come out. The movie was rather conventional and did not really have any moments where I was shocked or scared. Whether this is a sign of Tsukamoto "mellowing out" I can't say but I did find myself questioning if this movie was from the same man who gave us such unforgettable films such as "Tokyo Fist" and "Tetsuro".While "hitomi" (real name Furuya Hitomi) is certainly easy on the eyes and makes for a sexy heroine, she seems hopelessly miscast as the stoic and straight laced police detective, Kirishima. Her radiant beauty actually works against her as viewers will be hard pressed to believe her to be the character she portrays.The same could also be said of Matsuda Ryuhei who is a bit too much of a "pretty boy" to be the reclusive and brooding "Nightmare Detective". Matsuda's portrayal seems to follow the Japanese film trend of having "Emo" protagonists be one note characters who are all brooding, self-absorbed, loners, social outcasts and misfits. It is hard to identify with these heroes as they don't project any type of likability and instead expect audiences to "feel their pain". In addition to directing the movie, Tsukamoto also stars in the film as the central villain character. He doesn't say much but his flamboyant and intense acting is both scary and humorous.Compared to his groundbreaking "Tetsuro" and "Tokyo Fist", "Akumu Tantei" is a bit of a disappointment, sharing none of the visual flair, unconventional style or edgy story of those films. While an enjoyable film with beautiful leads, the story won't win any new admirers. I kind of felt underwhelmed by the movie and kind of hoped Tsukamoto would give us something new to talk about rather than long for the inventiveness of his past works.

kosmasp Visually this movie is really good. I was able to watch it at a theatre in Stuttgart as part of the "Fantasy Filmfest Nights" that take place every year in the spring (for a few years now) for quite some time now.While this movie tries to mix paranormal and normal things together it does not achieve this goal entirely. This movie does have a few good scares (and it is bloody violent too, so be prepared for that), but you're never really emotionally attached to the main characters. The problem here lies within the characterization. You do see people get hurt here, but it's not like you get to know them to really care. Even if they are "only" in danger (you have to see the movie to see if there any false scares here, although if you have watched some horror movies, you will be able to foresee a few things), you're not really worried about them. You just wait for a shock to happen ...When all is said and done (the end of the movie), you might be left with the feeling that there could've been more ... been done with the material (idea)!