Directed by Nagisa Oshima
Japan
SOUTH FLORIDA PREMIERE
In nineteenth-century Japan a ravishingly androgynous young recruit
sparks lust among the ranks and leadership of the all-male Shogun
militia, where homosexuality, while not exactly rampant, is much more
accepted than we might imagine.Ý The boy's youthful locks, seemingly
at odds with his savage swordsmanship, quickly gain Kano (ethereal
teen newcomer Ryuhei Matsuda) a long list of obsessive admirers and
rival lovers, whose perpetual denials of homosexuality inevitability
crumble with sharply-observed wit.Ý When jealousy leads to a string
of savage murders, the entire Samurai order - behind its square-jawed
stoicism - begins to fall apart. At first glance, the alluring Kano
seems obedient, if detached, moving from bed to bed impassively, or
beheading a condemned Samurai with savage dispatch. Yet, hidden behind
his bangs is a glint of bloodlust, a love of his own disruptive power.ÝÝ
Legendary Japanese director Nagashi Oshima has devoted his forty-year
career to breaking taboos, most notably in the graphically erotic
seventies classic In the Realm of theÝ Senses. His latest offering
- the first-ever gay Samurai movie- offers no concessions to Western
audiences, except perhaps for those who may recognize cult actor/director
Takeshi "Beat" Kitano as the militia's captain.Ý This wholly
Japanese film, hypnotically elegant in its period costumes and its
moody electronic score, transports us to a world far from ours, yet
one eerily familiar in its emotional terrain.Ý In Japanese with
English subtitles.
7:00 PM Screening $10
Followed by Festival Club @ Laundry Bar with no additional admission
charge
Taboo
(Gohatto)