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Audition

1701 votes

Seven years after the death of his wife, widower Shigeharu seeks advice on how to find a new wife from a colleague. Taking advantage of their position as a film company, they stage an audition. Interviewing a series of women, Shigeharu is enchanted by the quiet Asami. But soon things take a twisted turn as Asami isn’t what she seems to be.

Status: Released

Released Date: 2000-03-03

Runtime: 115 mins

Director: Takashi Miike

Spoken language: 日本語

Genres: Horror, Drama

Original title: Audition

Production Companies: Basara Pictures, Creators Company Connection, Omega Project

Production Countries: Japan

Cast

Ryo Ishibashi

Eihi Shiina

Jun Kunimura

Tetsu Sawaki

Renji Ishibashi

Miyuki Matsuda

Toshie Negishi

Yuriko Hirooka

Shigeru Saiki

Ken Mitsuishi

Ren Osugi

Kanji Tsuda

Fumiyo Kohinata

Misato Nakamura

Reviews

John Chard

You'll only love me. Wont you? As the film lovers of the Western World clamoured for more Asian horror, along came Ôdishon (Audition), a one of a kind sort of pic. Its positive reputation is well deserved, though what negative press exists is certainly understandable. Run time runs close to two hours, and for ninety minutes of that time the film trundles along at a sedate pace. Director Takashi Miike is exploring the key characters, deftly providing an overlay of grief management, loneliness, sadness and even cruelty. There's a deliberately hallucinatory vibe to the narrative, with many thematic beats ticking away, though answers are not readily available, where both the lead protagonist and antagonist have blurry mindsets, or do they? It all builds to the Grand Guignol last quarter, where the film has gained its wince inducing rep. Worth the wait? Yes it is for sure, even if it is tinged with a sense of disappointment that there's one too many twists for twist sake. 7/10

2015-10-17

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