MPD Psycho

Unusual start to this one -I’m reviewing a TV series, directed by a well established Japanese film director - the incredible Miike Takashi - and what a treat this was.

The plot concerns Detectives Amamiya and Sasayama who are on the trail of a psychotic personality called Nishizono Shinji. Nishizono can inhabit and possess the bodies of victims using mobile phones or computers (or by touch) which makes him harder to track, forcing our heroes to trawl the world of underground, state of the art snuff peddlers - but it seems that the entity wants to be caught, and has a disturbing connection to the childhood of the schizophrenic Sasayama. This is all established in the first 30 minutes of episode 1…out of six (roughly) one hour episodes.

We are swiftly engulfed in a phantasmagoria of a 70’s rock star turned terrorist, a otaku assistant who reveals in his meticulous models of the myriad gruesome murders, and a suspicious female observer who evidently knows more than she reveals….

What I love about stuff like this is that simply you won’t get images, ideas and execution of story like this in the West - at least not in something that has been commissioned for TV for fuck’s sake. Miike drenches the screen with constant rain, but never explains why - sometimes it is evidently radioactive but this is never commented upon, nor explained - and simply adds to the surreal elements of this unique series.

Characters drift in from scene to scene without explanation or obvious narrative purpose - many of them unsurprisingly don’t make it to the final reel. Some of the more distasteful (and by association) disturbing elements of the image within some of the violent scenes have been distorted, one assumes to get past the censors and secure a TV rating - Cracker, Holby City, Casualty - you ain’t in the same league. But for me there is a purpose. This is not just to shock, to titillate - there is a rhyme and reason which becomes apparent as the series unfolds.

Finally, and for the me the most memorable element of this series (yes, even more memorable than the massacre in the Japanese girls finishing school at the start of episode 3) is the absurdist ’70’s feel to the soundtrack, I guess in part to reference the 70’s incubation of the narrative. One track has haunted me ever since - it’s reminiscent of
Stan “Rumblefish” Ridgeway - you’ll understand - I hope - if you get round to renting this.

Oh, and Chiaki Kuriyama makes a brief appearance - the cute assassin of Kill Bill I - and you can see some MPD footage here - enjoy…..

~ by mintyblonde on October 16, 2006.