The Bird People in China

(this review is posted simultaneously at reelsuave. thanks to the editor, john, for his effort. visit reelsuave to discover some extraordinary cinema.)

“And again I slept thousands of times, but I have never seen a dream of myself flying.”

It is one of those movies you are scared of writing about lest you might end up robbing the reader of the joy of discovering the movie by himself. I strongly suggest that you go ahead and watch the movie in case you haven’t, before reading this.

The movie doesn’t fit into any genre. It almost seems like a fantasy but it is so real in parts; it is humorous indeed with genuine laugh-out-loud moments, and yet takes a look at life that leaves the viewer thinking a long time after the movie is over. Above all, it is a movie about the triumph of human belief. Buoyed by touches of exquisite humor, fantasy, love, innocence, hope and magic, the movie ushers in a new wave of cinematic experience. And to think that the director is mostly known for his mastery in depicting exaggerated violence, horror and bizarre sexual perversions, as in movies like “Ichi the killer”, and in the segment “Box” in “Three.. Extremes”, it is indeed a treat from director Takashi Miike.

The movie is about a Japanese businessman and a yakuza who end up in a small village in the depths of Yun Nan province of China, untouched by human civilization. While the first part of the movie details the journey of the two, the second shows the transformation underwent by the two after they reach the magical village. And magical it is, as the director succeeds in depicting – seemingly impossible incidents, but filled with such belief and innocence that you cannot but believe it yourself.

The movie is accompanied by enchanting visuals and a haunting soundtrack that weaves in seamlessly into the fabric of the movie. It helps in enduring the pleasant, magical aura of the entire movie. The actors are genuine and don’t make a single mistake that would otherwise distract the enraptured viewer. Before one realizes, the transformation of the characters is already complete. The end of the movie leaves the viewer unmovable, and yet reeling under an unfathomable force, floating with feet firmly on ground!

Make this journey and you will have reached a place you have never been to before!