BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Micitype Pretty Good

ThedevilChoose When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

ghostsarescared I watched Lily Chou-Chou last night and was mesmerized and deeply moved by it. The use of lighting and shadow instantly produce a subject-less nostalgia, sort of a yearning without knowing what one is yearning for. Perhaps these youth yearned for a purpose. Confusion about identity is central to this film, and I felt a very helpless feeling throughout. The music, especially the song 'Kaifuku Suru Kizu' was very haunting. I don't know if it was the notion of 'ethereal music' placed at the beginning meant to trick the viewer into hearing something that isn't there, or if the music really contained an 'otherness'-either way, I felt something I hadn't before when I heard it. The song's been stuck in my head all day. Overall a soul-crushing movie that still remains realistic despite its dreamy feel. I think it accurately portrays the chaos of ideas and meanings and meaninglessness of our modern age colliding with human emotion. 8/10.

noonward All About Lily Chou-Chou is a movie that deals in teenaged alienation and admiration. Based around a fictional popstar named Lily Chou-Chou, the characters inhibit a sense of realism that makes the movie perfectly palatable to a bigger audience. However on a technical term, the movie brings together a number of creative methods. The emails (or messageboard) that are strewn throughout display a strong realisation of our admiration towards such media personas. It also explores the idolism we give out to people that influence and connect with us through an art form, which in this case is music.Some of the scenes can be confusing as there is not too much coherence throughout the movie in terms of a plot line however we see scenes of suburban torment, beautiful acres of green fields that are superbly shot and long shots of beaches and the sea. Also contained in the movie is two opposing sides of teenaged life; care-free fun and angst-filled isolation. The story of Kuno is a sad one, we see her raped and see her head shaven which ends up leading to her death. We also see classroom violence which may very well be exaggerated for melancholic effect but definitely has a profound influence on the viewer.A lot of things about this movie make it an interesting watch but my only concern with it is that maybe it's too long. Due to the 146 or so minute runtime, there are times where I felt parts could be cut down. The padding out the director has took with the movie does take away from the enjoyment of it and perhaps with a little more editing, I would find the movie more engrossing. However, the film does generate a good amount of interesting scenes and relatable characters which doesn't make the movie a chore to watch. Nothing here is challenging except for the overkilled duration. But with the right state of mind, one may enjoy the floating camera shots of urban and rural Japan.

Richard Hibbert All About Lily Chou-Chou is possibly the hardest film to write a review about. Shunji Iwai has made a killer film here, but it's quite emotionally challenging to sit through. But, maybe that's because I'm a big softie at heart. The first film to be filmed with a digital camera? Can it really be that good? Yes, yes it can. Welcome to the new world of film-making.The film follows Yûichi Hasumi (Hayato Ichihara), a teenager who slowly gets sucked into a local gang of teenagers. However, the heart of the film is about his taste in music. Lily Chou-Chou, his idol, was born exactly after John Lennon was shot dead. Her fans believe she is high on the 'Ether', a substance supposedly everywhere, it holds spiritual value, but there is no scientific evidence to prove it's there. This helps her write the songs she does. Yûichi runs a website for her fans, in the form of a BBS where they can share their love for her.Confused yet?While doing that, he's stealing, mugging and pimping for the local gang that he's stuck in. The gang leader is Shusuke Hoshino (Shûgo Oshinari) began as the class geek, but soon after his parents split up, he slowly turns into a psychotic bully. There's also Yôko Kuno (Ayumi Ito), an incredible pianist who is being bullied by a large group of classmates.It's all bound to get ugly, and it does. But I'll leave the specific details for when you sit down and watch the film. But the film itself doesn't appeal to everyone. The film is incredibly slow, so people watching just for the violence will possibly find this the most difficult film to watch. The best way to explain this film would be that it's just real life inside a DVD. It's like watching someone else's life, so expect some slow-paced action.But the film is beautiful, perhaps painfully beautiful. The film isn't the usual type, when you watch the film, it's not a film where you have a little cry because the film is sad. This film is distressing. Kunos scene at the warehouse is incredibly hard to watch, it's quite heart breaking. But also beautiful, with the sweetest piano music playing over the top. Painfully beautiful, although the scenes can be quite distressing, but it keeps the beauty all through the film.As I said, it's possibly the hardest film to write about.The music in the film is great, Lily Chou-Chous music could be described as a mix between Bjork and Thom Yorke. Her vocals soothe over the troubled scenes.Overall the film is a distressing look into life as a teenager. There are theories that the film is not about Japanese teenagers at all. Rather, its portrayal of extreme violence, honour and sub-ordinance, cruelty and beauty may be an examination of adult psychology. One of my favourite films of recent years, and sits in the number four spot of my Top Ten. I'd advise you to watch it. It's really very good, but only if you can sit through it.

Simon_Cooper-1 I can easily see this film as causing many viewers a lot of frustration as the facts and events are not always easy to follow but, personally, I found it to be wildly vivid and fantastically telling piece for which I felt a lot of personal empathy; the attitudes to school and education by the school children (who are the stars of the film) particularly. The soundtrack is often borrowed from Claude Debussy whom Lily Chou Chou (the popular music star by whom the star is obsessed) was heavily influenced by. There are sequences in this film I found to be completely hypnotic and I think that a good rule of thumb for whether you will enjoy it or not would be whether you are completely absorbed by the opening scenes in the field or whether you just wonder what the hell is going on.