The Hypnotist

Rating:
Summary: When the serpents bits its tail !
Review: A real plague of mysterious suicides rocks Japan . A police is designed to investigate a entertainer who seemed to be inviolved somehow with these weird cases of murder . But beware of this suspect because he wiil be in the middle of a double chase , the police and the possible victim of a mastermind. And that circunstancewill arise a film of horrid and gothic proportions.
Even if the story is a real tribute to the film noir the film by itself develops its own musculature and personality . Imaginery and solid script makes the difference.


Rating:
Summary: Barely mediocre at very best.
Review: I bought this, then sold it that same week. The characters are unbelievable. The story is original, but weak and convoluted. Sorry, but come on. I like to be given credit as a viewer. The Special FX are pretty bad, too. CGI for the death scenes? CGI for breaking glass, even? UGH! I hate to give a bad review, but people ranted and raved about this movie for a while. I sought it out, but was left disapointed and irritated.

Rating:
Summary: To understand this film, you must understand life in Japan.
Review: I love this film. Yes, the special effects leave alot to be desired, and yes their are some characters and scenes that are not explained well enough. That's why I gave it a 4 star rating, instead of a 5 star rating. But as a whole, this film shows you what girls in the "hostess" business do to guys, specifically Japanese working males, that get caught up with them. Males that are simply looking for love in all the wrong places. This is one of those films that needs to be looked at more then once. It can serve as a blueprint, teaching you about the pyschology of the average Japanese resident, both male and female. If you can get past the sensationalism, and the weak effects, you will see what I am talking about. If you love Japanese modern-pop culture, chances are you will love this film.

Rating:
Summary: To understand this film, you must understand life in Japan.
Review: I love this film. Yes, the special effects leave alot to be desired, and yes their are some characters and scenes that are not explained well enough. That's why I gave it a 4 star rating, instead of a 5 star rating. But as a whole, this film shows you what girls in the "hostess" business do to guys, specifically Japanese working males, that get caught up with them. Males that are simply looking for love in all the wrong places. This is one of those films that needs to be looked at more then once. It can serve as a blueprint, teaching you about the pyschology of the average Japanese resident, both male and female. If you can get past the sensationalism, and the weak effects, you will see what I am talking about. If you love Japanese modern-pop culture, chances are you will love this film.

Rating:
Summary: Routine potboiler with intriguing premise
Review: THE HYPNOTIST [Saimin] (Japan - 1999): Following a series of bizarre and apparently unrelated 'suicides', an experienced Tokyo detective (Ken Utsui) enlists the help of a young psychoanalyst (Goro Inagaki) who believes the victims were acting on a post-hypnotic suggestion. But their subsequent investigations reveal an even darker force at work, linked to a young girl (Miho Kanno) whose life has been blighted by sadistic abuse...

Based on a novel by Keisuke Matsuoka, this densely-plotted mystery takes inspiration from a variety of sources (Italian gialli, traditional Japanese ghost stories, etc.), though some of the images in the climactic showdown reveal a more immediate influence: The recent commercial success of Hideo Nakata's RING (Ringu, 1998). For all its ambition, however, THE HYPNOTIST is a routine potboiler which stumbles badly after a powerhouse opening (the 'suicides' are particularly impressive, despite some feeble CGI effects), though director Masayuki Ochiai - who co-wrote the script with Yasushi Fukuda - rallies proceedings for an extended finale in which the narrative's startling secrets are finally revealed. Ochiai is best known for his film adaptation of novel-turned-video-game PARASITE EVE (Parasaitu Ivo, 1997) - which also starred leading man Inagaki (a member of Japanese pop group SMAP) - and while THE HYPNOTIST echoes that movie's strong visual sense, it falls short as drama, and most of the characters are mere ciphers, undermining the storyline's emotional pay-off. Which is a shame, because the final half hour is galvanized by a series of dynamic set-pieces - most notably, a concert hall sequence in which Dvorak's 'New World'symphony is transformed into an instrument of murder! - and Ochiai is well-served by an excellent production team. However, those lured by the promise of gory carnage may be disappointed - the film is long on atmospherics and short on splatter.

Performances are varied, due to the script's limitations, but Kanno (TOMIE) is outstanding as a young woman suffering from multiple personality disorder - which, the subtitles on this print assures us, isn't recognized as a viable medical condition in Japan! - who falls prey to a sleazy TV hypnotist (Takeshi Masu), a prime suspect in the murders. Inagaki is bland in a one-dimensional role, and he's constantly upstaged by Utsui, a veteran performer whose career stretches back to the "Super Giant" (Supa Jaiantsu) series of the 1950's. Original English export title: HYPNOSIS.

ADV Films' DVD is an OK representation of the original film, though the soft-looking print makes the film look as though it was photographed digitally rather than on 35mm film! The soundtrack is excellent, with bravura use of surrounds for various creepy effects. The only extra is a video trailer which sells the film a little short.

109m 10s
1.85:1 / 16:9 enhanced
DVD soundtrack: Dolby Surround 2.0
Theatrical soundtrack: Dolby Stereo SR
Language: Japanese (with optional English subtitles)
Region 1