In prison, a strangely placid Mamoru entrusts his only valued possession, a pet jellyfish, to Yuji's care, and when Mamoru's negligent father, Shinchiro (In the Realm of the Senses' Tatsuya Fuji) arrives, he and Yuji strike up an unlikely friendship and wind up living under the same roof. The passive but poisonous creature soon becomes both a symbol for Yuji's burgeoning psychosis and a literal device to wreak vengeance on society at large that pays off in an unexpected finale.
Best known for his languid, unsettling, and sometimes inscrutable horror films like Pulse, Charisma, and Cure, director Kiyoshi Kurosawa turns to more seemingly benign subject matter in Bright Future (Akarui mirai) with a look at dangerous youth directly descended from the ranks of filmmakers like Fukasaku. However, the visual and narrative approach falls easily in line with Kurosawa's other works, from its surreal atmosphere of disconnected urban lives tragically circling each other to the enigmatic symbolism of danger ready to erupt. The presence of a crimson-hued jellyfish may be a bit easier to swallow for new viewers than some of Kurosawa's other conceits (e.g., Charisma's malefic tree or Pulse's apocalyptic website), so newcomers might be well-advised to start here before embarking into his more difficult horror efforts. As with his other films, the end result feels like a bit less than the sum of its impressive parts; indeed, by the end one may look back and wonder exactly what makes each character tick within the fabric of the story.
Palm Pictures' respectable release follows a couple of earlier import releases and, apart from containing only a standard two-channel stereo mix compared to the Japanese DVD's 5.1, stacks up rather nicely. The film was shot on digital video and as such will never look as good as a professional 35mm production; the erratic black levels also seem a bit lighter than normal, a trait common in many non-corrected transfers of films prepared in Japan.
The DVD also contains the theatrical trailer and, more significantly, an hour-long documentary entitled "Ambivalent Future." More hands-on than usual, this piece contains a great deal of input from Kurosawa who is seen at work with all of the actors and behind-the-scenes crew, with various interview segments interspersed to give a more thorough portrait of his apparently easygoing directorial method. The disc also includes promos for other Palm Pictures releases including their concurrent edition of Dolls.
For more information about Bright Future, visit Palm Pictures. To order Bright Future, go to TCM Shopping.
by Nathaniel Thompson
