[Directors] "Box Man"

[Directors]
A Japanese film introduction program brought to you by ROPPONGI TSUTAYA BOOKS WATCH PLAN.
We will introduce recommended works carefully selected from Japanese films being released in 2024, from the perspective of film directors.

 

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The thirteenth Directors film is "The Box Man," directed by Ishii Gakuryu, which will be released on Friday, August 23rd.

 

 

"Box Man"
2024 | Director: Gakuryu Ishii

 

From Friday, (Fri) 23, 2024
Nationwide release

 

 

The Box Man, an original novel by Abe Kobo, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year in 2024, is a work that has influenced many creators.
Famously, game designer Hideo Kojima paid homage to the genre in his popular game series "Metal Gear."
He was also quoted in a segment called "Denpa Shounen-teki Box Man" on the variety show "Susume! Denpa Shounen."
Although it is a difficult novel to understand, there are countless works that have been influenced by it, from unique interpretations of its spirit to imitations of its visual impact.

 

As has already been mentioned in various places, the film adaptation by director Ishii Gakuryu has a history spanning more than 20 years.
Tragedy struck when production was cancelled just before it was due to begin shooting in Germany, where the filming was scheduled to take place.
After 27 years, the work is finally completed.

 

Director Ishii attracted attention with his independent film High School Panic under the name Ishii Sogo.
Later, while still a university student, he independently produced "Crazy Thunder Road," which gained cult popularity.
He has received high acclaim both at home and abroad for his punkish style, but from the late 1980s he took a break from feature films.
He made a comeback in the mid-90s, but it was actually around this time that Box Man first gained popularity.
After the Hakoo project fell through, he released a major work called "Gojoe: Spirit War Chronicles," which told the story of Benkei and Ushiwakamaru using the cutting-edge VEX at the time.
Coincidentally, this film stars Nagase Masatoshi and Asano Tadanobu, who also appear in this film, "The Box Man."
My collaboration with these two actors, who were representative of Japanese films of that era, continued in films such as "ELECTRIC DRAGON 80000V" and "DEAD END RUN."
This is where experimental approaches start to become more noticeable.
He went into a period of inactivity as a feature film director, teaching at a university, but in 2010 he surprised everyone by suddenly announcing that he would be changing his name to his current name, Ishii Gakuryu.
In recent years, he has consistently produced works of various scales, and it could be said that he is approaching maturity.

 

There is an anecdote that when he was alive, Kobo Abe requested that he make "The Box Man" into an entertaining work.
Of course, the film adaptation has not made the work easy to understand for everyone, but it does offer the experience of understanding Abe Kobo through an interpretation filtered through the lens of director Ishii.
Furthermore, the act of "the Box Man looking at the world from his own perspective," as described in the film, is exactly what watching a movie is like.
I have no doubt that this is something that Director Ishii also took into consideration when adapting the film.
After watching this more multi-layered version of The Box Man, you may have already become one yourself.

 

 

 

"Wall Man"
2006 | Director: Wataru Hayakawa

 

This is a film adaptation of a short manga by Daijiro Moroboshi.
Not only are the titles similar, but the two films are also close in that they both delve into the theme of the relationship between peeking and being peeked at.
The depiction of how being aware of the existence of this "Wall Man" affects one's life is also similar to that of the Box Man, and could be seen as synchronicity in a psychological approach that works on the subconscious.