Movie Digest
Zokki is theoretically set up as a quirky comedy-drama about a group of misfits and eccentrics, stretched out across multiple narratives that occasionally overlap. Hiroyuki Ohashi’s legendary manga series about characters in “an obscure corner” of the earth has been adopted by three of Japan’s most creative and prolific actor-directors. The five loosely connected narratives in the film revolve around the secrets and lies, anxieties and tears, and puerile toilet humor that pepper their daily interactions.
The Feel-Good Part
In terms of narrative style Survive Style 5+ (2004) and Fish Story has a lot in common with Zokki. A sequence of vignettes is shown to the audience, which gradually crosses over into their contexts and eventually forms a single whole. Zokki isn’t exactly a wild comedy, but if you’ve watched any of Satoshi Miki’s films, you’ll recognize the peculiar weirdness that could only be produced in Japan. Riho Yoshioka, Ryuhei Matsuda, and Joe Kujo play the key roles in the film, which are all very impressive. Jun Kunimura, Shinnosuke Mitsushima, Yurina Yanagi, Masanobu Ando, and Mai Kiryuu make fantastic cameo appearances as well.
The Disappointing Factor
It’s particularly unfortunate because the main character, Mayumi Yusuda, is a female porn star who appears in almost every story in this anthology. She has the potential to disrupt the panoply of male voices, but she’s limited to the role of a fantasy object, tantalizingly out of reach as the men see her. She has no choice but to serve as a unifying thread for a group of male protagonists who represent the misfit figure across a range of ages. The film would have been better if the stories could have been condensed a little more because it feels a little prolonged.
In-Depth Analysis
This anthology based film includes 5 stories: An elderly guy who feels compelled to pass on his wisdom to a grown-up granddaughter; A peaceful loner who seeks self-discovery and meets a fisherman on a bike who invites him to a special lunch; A school friendship that becomes awkward as a result of a crush on an older brother; A young boy and his father have completely different notions about how to have fun; And A friendship that revolves upon a sequence of notes between two neighbors.
Yutaka Kuramochi’s Zokki is more of a sequence of images of a bizarre and eccentric universe than an anthology.
Star Power
All the 3 directors Takumi Saitoh, Yamada Takayuki, & Takenaka Naoto did an Impressive job with the film. The main lead for the respective stories Ryûhei Matsuda, Fuku Suzuki, Yûsaku Mor, Joe Kujon, Pistol Takehara, etc wonderfully portrayed the characters.
Overall Opinion
Zokki has a lot of unifying quirky detail as well as a satisfying ending that ties all the plot threads together. If you’re looking for another set of happy-go-lucky short narratives with a touch of Japanese receptivity, Zokki is a definite recommendation. It’s now available to watch online.
