20131024: Horror Review--X Game

X Game

1. Production Fundamentals; reception
1. Japanese live action feature length film, 2010, NR, 119 minutes, horror. Aspect: 2.35
2. IMDB: 5.5/10.0 from 185 users.  Spoken language is Japanese; English subtitles.
3. Rotten Tomatoes:  'No reviews yet,' and zero audience ratings.
4. Netflix: 3.0/5.0 from 19,548 user ratings.
5. Directed by Yohei Fukuda; screenplay by Mari Asato and Yoichi Minamikawa.
6. Starring: Hirofumi Araki as Hideaki Kokubo; Kazayuki Aijima, Shota Chiyu.


2. Setup, Plot
1. 'Mr Morino committed suicide' is what the opaque opening sequence is about.  Hopefully this will resolve.  Early on, Morino is just a sixth grade teacher.  Also, part of a university lecture is shown discussing 'urban legends' about the bullied getting retribution against the former bullies.  The stage is set at 10 minutes in.  The question is, who is going to be thrust into the meat grinder?


2. Hideaki is an obvious jerk, and would be my lead candidate.  Why his girlfriend, Rikako, puts up with him is hard to see.  One finds out toward the end of the movie.


3. Takeshi and Tetsuya were leaders in the stylized bullying done in the sixth grade, and they get to join the festivities.   Chie Koizumi was also a contributor.


4. After a bit more stage setting to justify vigilantism, these four wake up in a locked room.  They are compelled by two large hooded people with powerful electric shock weapons to play the X game, as explained on tape by the dead Mr. Morino.  There are 13 levels of punishment.  At each turn, a victim and a perpetrator have to be picked.  If the punishment is completed in under 3 minutes, the game goes to the next turn.  If not, the loser gets to be branded with a large X, about four inches in diameter; the spokes close to an inch across.


5. This game was played in the sixth grade by the bullies; the main victim was a girl named Mariko Kaburagi.  By one means or another, all the contestants are made to remember that fact.  One of the final points of the film was made by the character Tadashi Ishimatu: the bullies all forgot about him, but he still has PTSD from the bullying.  Not one of the four bullies even remembers him, much less what they did to him.


6. So, this is the vigilante justice mentioned academically in the beginning of the film.


7. How far does the vigilante justice succeed?


3. Conclusions
1. Probably the saddest thing I saw about this film was the tone of the comments made on Netflix.  About half of them had the same attitudes as the bullies mentioned above: that was ages ago, have you not forgotten?  We were just having fun; what's wrong with you?
2. One line summary: Vigilante action of the formerly bullied against their oppressors.
3. Four stars of five.


4. Scores
1. Cinematography: 9/10 Excellent in the well-lit scenes; reasonable in the dark ones.


2. Sound: 10/10 OK; fairly good on creepiness.


3. Acting: 7/10 Hirofumi Araki was rather good at being almost clueless to scared out of his wits.  Some of the other performances were a bit wooden.


4. Screenplay: 8/10 Had a beginning, middle, and an end.  The exposition of motivations was good.