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Suicide Circle (Jisatsu Sakuru) is a movie that I still have yet to decide if I love or hate but I know almost for certain that it's a movie I'm glad I saw. Suicide Circle enters a level of abstraction over the course of its 99 minutes that almost rivals the surreal works of the prolific Japanese director Takashi Miike, but doesn't quite mirror his elegance or insight. Suicide Circle is a movie filled with exquisitely disturbing and moving imagery, yet fails to make much of it.
Suicide Circle is a movie that goes through three phases in its long, complex, and utterly baffling plot. The movie begins with one of the most famous scenes in J-Horror history: a humongous group of schoolgirls holding hands and jumping in front of a subway train to their deaths as they laugh and giggle. A gruff detective investigates the matter behind their suicides as the amount of suicides in Japan skyrockets.
A mysterious bag containing a belt of human flesh appears at many scenes of the suicides and an even more mysterious website goes online adding a dot for every citizen who kills themselves. None of this makes much sense and the viewer is disappointed to learn that it never will, none of it is ever explained or wrapped up by the end of the movie.
The first phase of the movie concentrates on the detectives investigation of the suicides and he remains an important character throughout the movie, however the first third of the movie focuses primarily on the matter of the suicides and the ominous fog surrounding their reason.
We are later introduced to the computer otaku Bat, who is kidnapped by a serial killing glam rock wanna-be named Gemini. He takes credit for the murders, although he is only starving for attention. The second phase of the movie focuses on the fad of suicide and the morbid phenomenon that has swept Japan. It is perhaps a deep criticism of Japanese consumerism and the individuals unquestioning submission to social trends, but it is executed with a gaudiness and lack of subtlety that I found quite distasteful.
The third and final phase concerns the girlfriend of a suicide victim who is unsatisfied with the astounding lack of police information. She investigates his death and finds that the phenomenon of Japanese suicides is connected to a j-pop girl group called "Dessert" whose subliminal messages seem to be driving many to end their own lives.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmmsSUkTxeo
Not the group from the movie, but quite similar
The movie ends on a surreal note and answers none of the questions I had about the plot. Most surreal films don't bother to answer questions, the confusion and obfuscation of details is itself an important point of the plot itself. However, Suicide Circle isn't a surreal film until the last scene and the sudden switch to a kafkaesque world is quite annoying in light of the many questions the movie throws at the viewer. Unlike Audition or Dead Or Alive (two Miike masterpieces) the ending adds nothing to the film, it fails to build on the atmosphere it created, and it doesn't surprise the viewer in any positive way. Suicide Circle created an atmosphere of tense realism in light of an absurd situation only to come to an absurd (but visually striking) conclusion.
In most surreal films the message takes precedent over the plot and I suppose this is the light in which I must view Suicide Club yet I can not pretend to be satisfied by the final phase of the movie. All in all it was an intensely interesting movie with a very lackluster conclusion, but it is a movie which I recommend you watch and judge on your own terms.
 
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I've been watching a lot of films recently. If there is a horror movie (particularly an asian horror movie) you'd like me to watch and blog about just ask, I'll watch just about anything.
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Doc, your recent blog postings about Asian horror films have been amazing. I watched Noroi (because of your recommendation) and was highly impressed. I'll watch this one if I can. Thanks!
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asian ho..
I actually watched suicide club several years ago but I didn't realize it was the cut version. When I saw the uncut one last year, I was freaked out by this one part.
+ Show Spoiler +It was where music was playing while a whole bunch of people were committing suicide in different ways. One by pills, another by sticking her head into the oven, and then the lady in the kitchen... O lord. They were freaking showing the lady cut her fingers off and it made me cringe.
Opening and rooftop scenes were awesome but I wasn't a big fan of the movie overall.
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On September 24 2010 14:13 kNyTTyM wrote:asian ho.. I actually watched suicide club several years ago but I didn't realize it was the cut version. When I saw the uncut one last year, I was freaked out by this one part. + Show Spoiler +It was where music was playing while a whole bunch of people were committing suicide in different ways. One by pills, another by sticking her head into the oven, and then the lady in the kitchen... O lord. They were freaking showing the lady cut her fingers off and it made me cringe. Opening and rooftop scenes were awesome but I wasn't a big fan of the movie overall.
The cut scene was the best part of the movie IMO, it beautifully portrayed the dominance of media trends and consumerism in society and how people were happy to hurt themselves if it just meant fitting into a phenomenon.
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wow i totally came in here as soon as i saw "Asian Ho..." and was like YES ASIAN HOTTIES ^^
way to disappoint 
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Have you seen one missed call? A blog about that would be pretty cool. I watched the US version which was absolutely terrible so I'm kind of hesitant to sit through it again. Apparently the japanese version is quite good.
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United States10328 Posts
On September 24 2010 14:19 seRapH wrote:wow i totally came in here as soon as i saw "Asian Ho..." and was like YES ASIAN HOTTIES ^^ way to disappoint
same
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On September 24 2010 14:20 kNyTTyM wrote:
Have you seen one missed call? A blog about that would be pretty cool. I watched the US version which was absolutely terrible so I'm kind of hesitant to sit through it again. Apparently the japanese version is quite good.
japanese movie was terrible too
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I mouseovered Asian Ho to find an even better thread than I expected. JHorror is amazing, I haven't watched Suicide Circle yet, but from what you say, it really makes me want to see it. I think I'll go DL it now. 
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Haha, I thought it was going to be another one of DrH's image dumps, but this was a great movie nonetheless.
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mmm.. i didn't know who miike was, but if he made audition your respect for him seems justified to me. im not sure if i would say masterpiece, but it is certainly a very, very good movie.
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You should watch norikos dinner table, it's the sequel of this movie!
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Yes I took was fooled by the Asian Ho...
Anyway maybe you like to give us your take on Western Horror vs Asian Horror. Never really a big horror fan but i watched the Exorcists and it was so so but it was way over hyped for me, the American version of the ring was okay as a movie but the Japanese version wrecked me
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United States4633 Posts
wow this sounds like an interesting movie..... i dont think i can ever watch that though. too disturbing o.O
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The title appears as Asian ho... on the left side of the screen.
Just FYI. The attention on your blog may or may not be relevant to this title.
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I thought it was a really strange movie. Wasnt great or terrible, always a little awkward throughout. Especially the part where that guy started singing out of nowhere haha. I felt like I was missing out on an inside joke, with respect to that entire Genesis character. I watched it with people and we were just cracking up throughout, so it might have killed the horror mood idk.
I'll always remember the subway part as an iconic scene, other than that the movie and manga were both unremarkable.
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On September 24 2010 15:10 fearus wrote:Yes I took was fooled by the Asian Ho... Anyway maybe you like to give us your take on Western Horror vs Asian Horror. Never really a big horror fan but i watched the Exorcists and it was so so but it was way over hyped for me, the American version of the ring was okay as a movie but the Japanese version wrecked me
read my first j-horror blog and i explain that a bit
japanese horror is way more atmospheric and subtle
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I would take the "It is a movie that I would recommend you to watch" very lightly, especially for those not used to asian horror.
Suicide Club is definitely a great movie, the ending especially considering the + Show Spoiler +reason for the cop's death
Great movie, just think twice before watching it. Especially with your girlfriend. Especially if you're just dating and after the night you watched it together she will refuse her lifelong passion for Japan and manga forever. But a few months later it will be hilarious.
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On September 24 2010 16:13 r33k wrote:I would take the "It is a movie that I would recommend you to watch" very lightly, especially for those not used to asian horror. Suicide Club is definitely a great movie, the ending especially considering the + Show Spoiler +reason for the cop's death didn't feel too cryptic to me but the reasoning behind the plot was extremely interesting. The gore isn't as gratuitous as in other j-horrors but after watching the conclusion it feels like every scene was necessary, especially since they managed to creep the shit out of me even in the "clean" scenes. Great movie, just think twice before watching it. Especially with your girlfriend. Especially if you're just dating and after the night you watched it together she will refuse her lifelong passion for Japan and manga forever. But a few months later it will be hilarious.
imo one of the least creepy movies I've ever seen but different things scare different people
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EPT![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/2wz66.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/LiSaO.jpg)
