ODD OBSESSION Movie Review

The Key

Kon Ichikawa's dark comedy is the story of an elderly Japanese gentleman (Ganjiro Nakamura) whose sexual impotence leads to a bizarre series of events. His idea for producing his desired erection through an elaborate scheme does indeed work, but it also generates considerably more excitement than he bargained for. Odd Obsession surfers somewhat from a necessary obfuscation of some of the plot's specifics—it's unlikely that the film could have been fully realized in 1959 and legally projected anywhere, so compromises had to be made (including the unsatisfying ending.) Overall, however, it's a vicious, cynical, and highly entertaining examination of fetishism, desperation, and denial. With Machiko Kyo and Tatsuya Nakadai. It's a widescreen film—look for a letterboxed copy.

NEXT STOP … In the Realm of the Senses, The Face of Another, Rear Window

1960 96m/C JP Machiko Kyo, Ganjiro Nakamura; D: Kon Ichikawa. Golden Globe Awards ‘60: Best Foreign Film. VHS HMV, COL