Cold Fish

So endete mein Wochenende mit dem asiatischen Film Asien, bei dem ich die ersten beiden Teile von Chinese Ghost Story nacheinander geschaut habe, dann Three... Extremes angeschaut habe und schließlich mit Cold Fish geendet habe. Und das Ende war fast grandios. Warum nur fast? Weil die Laufzeit! Die zweieinhalb Stunden Laufzeit bremsen die vielversprechende und schnell verwirrende Geschichte, die sich von einem Familiendrama zu einem psychologischen Thriller entwickelt, um am Ende mit einem echten Gore-Massaker zu überraschen. Die letzte halbe Stunde ist wirklich actiongeladen und beschleunigt das ansonsten eher zähe Tempo. Und ich wäre nicht ich, wenn ich die wunderschönen Landschaften und ein paar rohen Vergewaltigungen nicht erwähnen würde. Aber ansonsten bin ich ein romantischer Mensch, meine Freunde hier können das bestätigen :) (17.03.2013)

Cold Fish isn't a film that would hit me as much as, for example, Suicide Club does from Sono. There, I felt that the statement about society was stronger and more meaningful. Still, even in Cold Fish, you'll find something more that gets to you, something that makes you think about what kind of people they really are and how far they're willing to go just to satisfy their desires. Not to mention the fact that they affect others with their behavior. (27.05.2017)

My third Sion Sono film has confirmed one thing for me, and that is that Sion is just plain tough. It doesn't matter how much the film can be incredible, grotesque, brutal until it's not pretty or downright inhuman at times. I also see that as sort of the point of this whole thing – it's incredible that with this kind of subject matter, you can even laugh at a few moments (without the occasional humor, I think I'd be having a heart attack), barely breathe, say "dude, no way", and all sorts of other stuff. A dyed in the wool multi-genre film that manages to take turns at really almost everything from comedy (and I'm really not kidding) to drama to thriller to pure exploitation (see the final butchery). If it's supposed to be a hidden critique of social order, complex and twisted family relationships, or a pure demonstration of what beasts people can be, of course you’ll find it there and the whole film can be understood in the same vein. But my point is rather that a film with this kind of intensity can stand up even as mere "entertainment" because I have never seen a more perfect Canadian romp. Another unforgettable fact is that Sion Sono is a complete professional in terms of form and the direction of Cold Fish has the balls of a Golem. Based on true events... (09.04.2012)