Fantastic Fest 2009

I was first drawn to KAMOGAWA HORUMÔ by the presence of Yoshiyoshi Arakawa, one of my favorite character actors from Japan. He most recently stole the show as the horror-obsessed love-smitten nerd from FINE TOTALLY FINE. He’s got something of a Steve Buscemi “funny looking guy” charm about him that makes me instantly warm towards his characters. The story opens at Kyoto University. The freshman class is getting their bearings, making friends and deciding on extra curricular activities. Yoshiyoshi is a recruiter for the “Order of the Azure Dragons” club, a seemingly innocuous university social club, “a regular group, the kind you might find absolutely anywhere.” Our small group of protagonists decide to join up- the beer at the parties is plentiful, there are cute girls, and the seniors seem like pleasant patriotic stand-up guys. My description ends here. I really don’t want to talk about what happens after the forty-two minute mark, immediately after all the senior Azure Dragons strip down buck-naked and begin to dance. Suffice it to say that I personally programmed this film because it delivers the weird out-of-left-field insanity that can only come from Japan. You are just going to have to trust me and watch this sucker unfold. Go into this movie cold. Have no expectations. Don’t watch the second spoileriffic trailer. Don’t ask questions or do Wikipedia searches on KAMOGAWA HORUMÔ. As former Texas gubernatorial candidate Clayton Williams would say, “just sit back and enjoy it.” I present to you all a tasty Japanese confection drizzled in bat-shit crazy syrup. Yum. (Tim League)

All images © 2009 Kamogawa HORUMO Film Partners.