Review: Though based on the Korean film, THE QUIET FAMILY, Takashi Miike’s HAPPINESS OF THE KATAKURIS is more than just a remake, different than a reinvention, but all together the aborted mutant love child from the chaotic womb of a his evil doppelganger. Matter of fact, KATAKURIS is a heart-warming musical comedy from the man who brought you FUDOH: THE NEXT GENERATION, AUDITION and ICHI THE KILLER. A tsunamic debut into an untapped genre that none saw coming…

In essence, the musical genre of Japan has never really been known globally. Especially since the American revues of yore, last year’s sensation of MOULIN ROUGE and the recent explosion of Bollywood musicals into the mainstream have been the only cinematic instruments outside the operatic spectrum audiences have been aware of internationally. This is the sole reason why KATAKURIS seem to come out of left field. A Japanese musical, you say? It’s as if, just when you thought Miike had done everything he could have, there was always this ace up his sleeve, waiting to cheat you when you broke concentration and took your eyes off the matter at hand to sneak a peek at the cover of VISITOR Q.

What makes KATAKURIS so distinct and so fresh, and god-damn entertaining is the film’s ability to manipulate you, your senses and cause you to feel multiple reactions to each scene. As oppose to laughing or being afraid during obvious parts, you’ll be viewing the opening sequence of KATAKURIS, sitting there with your jaw dropped as you watch a claymation of some angelic monstrosity being found in a woman’s soup and biting off her uvula and chasing after it while it floats away like a blown bubble in the sky. So confused I am as I don’t know whether to chuckle out loud, or be scared, or even be inspired at the utter coolness of what I just saw. And that’s only the topping of the banasplit as you dig deeper into the film, feeling emotions you didn’t know existed and giving birth to new ones from the union of others.

The song and dance interludes push the film from one scene to the next, from awkward songs of suicide and comforting ballads of joy, you never know what to expect in their selection of tracks ranging in diversity of early American ragtime to 80’s rock. How fascinating the films becomes as you bop your head and tap your feet to these musical pieces, accompanied by the most outlandish, exaggerated blocking to even a Michael Jackson’s THRILLER inspired dance. And through it all, you’re wishing for another as the previous one ends.

Nonetheless, under all the absolute madness, dark humor and Broadway-esque dance sequences, is a story about a family coming together in learning how to love, trust and honor each other in the way families are supposed to. It is the definitive dream of the father that drives the film into gratifying and uplifting dimensions, which curiously is observed and narrated by the youngest of the Katakuri family, the little granddaughter, often making statements of profoundness and beauty. It is the genius of Miike that is able to hurl a sentimental premise such as the KATAKURIS into a frenzied setting, filled with vibrant, intriguing characters, smothered in death and mayhem and still keeping the urgency of the film alive by staying focused and concentrated on the family that ties the picture together.