Such a frustrating disappointment

It is not only a funny movie, but it allows a great amount of joy for anyone who watches it.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

It has become clear that Seijun Suzuki is the Wong Jing of Japan, sporting an equally lame sense of "humor" that consists of hysterical behavior and incessant screaming within poorly constructed, thoughtless scenarios. It's no wonder this idiot got canned by Nikkatsu and subsequently blacklisted after his lame crapfest "Branded to Kill" (1967), which showcased ineptly constructed shootouts, gratuitous sexual content, lots of bad acting, and a preposterous ending with some dimwit acting hysterical in a boxing ring. If a director of mine dropped that pile of elephant compost on my desk, I'd fire his ass too.As a viewer, I was unlucky enough to experience Suzuki's "Pistol Opera" (2001) first, which still holds the dubious record for "Worst Movie Ever Made" in my book. With "Princess Raccoon" (2005), however, Suzuki proved that his abject stupidity could yield a flawed, yet moderately entertaining film, but my patience is running thin. I've got lots of Asian movies to watch, and I don't like wasting my time with directors who have a 33% success ratio. "Fighting Elegy" (1966) just made it 25%.At no point is this movie remotely funny or engaging. It uses the "40-year-old acting like a juvenile child" gag that – in and of itself – is utterly lame and it just grates on the nerves from the very first minute. Characters have zero complexity and the fight scenes are a disgrace in their artificiality and persistent use of biting, nosepicking, and people falling over each other. None of the fights look real and seem to be the victim of incompetent directing as the baddies look as if their swatting flies the entire time. The camera-work uses amateur ploys like random closeups and rapid editing for no apparently good reason. These tactics are sure fire points of condemnation when presented in modern day films, but somehow magically become "brilliant" and "masterful" when presented in a Japanese film released before 1970. Go figure.Don't misunderstand me, because I really do like pre-1970 Japanese cinema. Seriously, I do. For example, of the 17 Yasujiro Ozu films I've had the pleasure of seeing, 4 were excellent, 5 were very good, 6 were good, and 2 were mediocre. That's an 88% success ratio, which means that I froth at the mouth to watch more of his films. However, the difference between a great director like Ozu and low-talent assclowns like Seijun Suzuki and Akira Kurosawa is that Ozu is capable of directing actors properly and understands that quaint realism can supersede thoughtless hysterical behavior and/or melodramatic fluff.On a side note, I fired up a few of Suzuki's interviews that were included as special features on the DVD releases. It's uncomfortable hearing him pat himself on the back while gloating about the fact that he focuses on entertainment value first and foremost. The problem is that Suzuki's idea of "entertainment" results in contrived silliness mixed with uninteresting, undeveloped content. I fear that the only reason "Princess Raccoon" worked as an entertainment vehicle was because it had an implicitly interesting premise and was structured within a self-referential fantasy world where contrivance felt natural. Perhaps Suzuki should make another stage-play style musical, because his attempts at real life humor are abysmal and shallow at best.

Okay, so Seijun Suzuki's movie "Fighting Elegy" has a little bit more to it than that--as Suzuki movies are wont to do, post-modernly. But as a film-goer who delights in the good, the bad, AND the ugly coming out of Japan while the majority of Italian film leaves him cold (except Antonioni, who is a personal god), some of the more Italian-influenced scenes in this movie sent me into near hysterics. You know, it's not often movies make me laugh as much as this one did.Satire is the intention in this one, and it most primarily reminds me of "Amarcord"--only, you know, without the navel-gazing. Suzuki drops Fellini's typical approach to the Carnivalesque and replaces it with gorgeous, luminous black-and-white imagery. It also reminds me of a Godard film, in terms of editing style--only, you know, without the navel-gazing. Often movies seem like they must have been fun to be in, or they look like they were fun to make, but this one looks like it was a lot of fun to edit. Pretty much nothing editing-wise is held sacred as Suzuki plays around with split frames, sudden extreme closeups, and yes, jump cuts.But what it's all about? Young, Catholic Kiroku is in love with his flat-mate Michiko; so much so, in fact, that he finds himself having to get into fights in order to get his passion and sexual frustration out (masturbation isn't allowed 'cause the Lord disapproves--setting the scene for one of the most hilarious moments of fetishism in screen history). He joins a ridiculously-dressed gang in order to regularly be involved in fights, and their rules and edicts both keep him separated from Michiko as well as eventually kicked out of school. He moves to the Aizu on the countryside, where he immediately gets into more fights and eventually starts an epic gang battle that lasts an entire night. Victorious, there's practically nothing left to do but join Japan's pre-WWII army, gearing up for the Imperialism the world is very familiar with.That's all morbid and stuff, but the tone is pitch-perfect for Suzuki's satirical implications. Kiroku's blind passion is used to make fun of anything from duck-walking and melodramatic teenage drama to general male machismo and the undertones of male impotency. The intense imagery fits Kiroku's proto-fascist male Romanticism to a cue, and ultimately his relationship to Michiko becomes the best tongue-in-cheek nod to teenage stupidity since Romeo and Juliet.Meanwhile, I stress the Italian influence. Italian music, the jabs at Catholicism, and a particularly familiar scene by the sea-shore back up this theme while the general story involves the idea of fascism in the particularly Italian sense, that of basically roving gangs of bullies looking to the extremes of the law to cover their dissatisfaction, leading to the belief of violence as the ultimate social right. This contrasts with the more clichéd view of pre-war Japanese Imperialism where the soldiers are most often shown as devoted machine-like automatons for the state juggernaut, as opposed to overly hormonal teens.Anyway, I've seen some great Suzuki films, but this has instantly become by far my favorite one. It's also one the best Japanese comedies I've seen so far--nay, one of the best comedies no matter the country of origin. Highly recommended for some body laughs, and your eyes will love the scenery, too.--PolarisDiB

The first time around, I was a little lost on this one. I didn't have the proper knowledge of its historical context. The Criterion liner notes are a big help. I just wish I had read them more recently. This is a satire of the militaristic attitude that eventually lead Japan into WWII. I remembered it being a comedy. It does have its comic moments, mostly involving Kiroku's uncontrollable erections, but it is rather serious in tone. Well, that's even a little weird. Suzuki is able to create a remarkable balance between the film's serious themes, its action sequences, as well as its comic touches. All the while, he creates a film of outstanding imagery, gorgeous cinematography, and artful editing. To think, Suzuki Seijun had probably no ability to choose which films he made. He was a bit lucky to land this one, though, as it was written by Kaneto Shindo, who had to be hot stuff after having already directed both The Island and Onibaba (though I wouldn't know how those films were received in Japan). This is one of only two Suzuki films that stand outside of the yakuza genre, so here (and in Story of a Prostitute) he was able to deal with deeper themes than normal. But anyway, Suzuki had little control over what material he was to direct, one way or another. I find his ability to create great art infinitely more impressive than any number of cinematic artists who had more or less complete control over their own work. It would be utterly wrong not to include Suzuki in the pantheon of the world's greatest film artists.

* minor spoilers * Fighting Elegy is the crowning feature of a 6 DVD package of Suzuki's work (also featuring the wacky Tokyo Drifter and similar gems), released in 2003 in France (region 2, French subtitles only). Wonderfully shot in black and white, with a swiftness and a brutality one finds more and more disturbing as the (very grim) end nears... It indeed reminded me of Ferdydurke (the book, not the film, which was rather a disappointment), with its mixture of male hysteria, repressed sexuality and elegance. (And it is an additional pleasure to think that Suzuki Seijun is still around !)