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Last Life in the Universe (2004)
Rated: 15
Runtime: 2 hrs 2 mins
Theatrical Release: 30-07-2004
Synopsis: A magic-realist romance about the culture bridges we build - sometimes wish we could jump off of Last Life in the Universe brings together three of the most exciting talents in current world cinema: director Pen-ek Ratanaruang, Japanese superstar Asano Tadanobu, and Hong Kong-based... A magic-realist romance about the culture bridges we build - sometimes wish we could jump off of Last Life in the Universe brings together three of the most exciting talents in current world cinema: director Pen-ek Ratanaruang, Japanese superstar Asano Tadanobu, and Hong Kong-based cinematographer Christopher Doyle. Under the guidance of this much-celebrated triumvirate, refugee elements of Japanese yakuza films, an unpredictable succession of lush and intoxicating images, and a host of eccentric narrative tics from the cutting edge of Thai cinema converge to tell the story of the mysterious Kenji, a lonely, obsessive-compulsive Japanese librarian's assistant and occasional suicide hobbyist quietly living - and hoping to die - in Bangkok. Hiding from an unknown past, the Mishima-identified and moppishly-coiffed Kenji seems determined on a premature rendezvous with oblivion: when first we meet him, he's already swinging by the neck from a makeshift noose. (Or is he?) If only Nid, the beautiful Thai woman Kenji spies between the shelves one day, hadn't managed to die first. And if only Nid's acid-tongued sister, Noi - who inadvertently begins seducing the suicidal loner back into the chaos of life - weren't leaving for Osaka on the Monday morning plane... -- © Palm Pictures [More]
Genre: Comedies
Starring: Tadanobu Asano, Sinitta Boonyasak, Laila Boonyasak, Matsushige Yutaka, Takeuchi Riki
Screenwriter: Prabda Yoon, Pen-ek Ratanaruang
Producer: Nonzee Nimibutr, Duangkamol Limcharoen
Composer: Small Room, Hualampong Riddim
DVD Info
Release:
Mar 2, 2006
DVD Features:
- Region (unknown)
- Keep Case
- Full Frame - 1.33
Audio:
- Surround Sound 5.1 English
Additional Release Material:
- Commentary
- Interviews with Cast and Crew
- Behind the Scenes
- Theatrical Trailer
- Previews
DVD Rom Features:
- Weblinks
Reviews
It's an unsuccessful experiment in combining genres that are as irreconcilable as oil and water.
It may sound like a conventional tale, but this is full of magical surprises that occasionally ruffle its otherwise serene surface.
Asano é sempre um ator interessante, mas a montagem é auto-indulgente e o roteiro, pretensioso.
A film that demands second and even third viewings in order to absorb all of its nuances.
This trip-hoppy tone poem left me feeling like I'd never seen a movie before.
... a dreamy study in stillness broken by suicide fantasies, flashbacks, and the hired killers, but even the violence has a meditative even melancholy quality to it...
It's an offbeat romance that defies easy labeling, recommendable as a film buff's pleasure and a semi-audacious art-house curio.
[Reflects] the growing interpenetration of many individual national cinemas into a cultural conglomerate that reflects the irresistible tide of cinematic globalization.
The film has a precise, slow pace that allows us to get to know these quiet, quirky characters, and an imaginatively experimental approach to their thoughts and dreams.
An absorbing series of intricately planned shots that play like installation art at a modern museum.
This arthouse drama could have used less concept and more focused storytelling.
The Thai locales, the stars and Doyle's expressive cinematography add up to a disarmingly seductive yet always precarious film experience.
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