PFF/Cinefest '09: The Magic Hour

The Web site for the award-winning alternative weekly, the Philadelphia City Paper.

options

PFF/Cinefest '09: The Magic Hour

POSTED: Friday, April 3, 2009, 3:02 PM

Filed Under: Movies Film Fest

?? The Magic Hour

Koki Mitani wrote and directed this hysterical homage to the great screwball comedies Hollywood yesteryear. The recipient of 11 nominations in this year's Japanese Academy Awards, The Magic Hour assembles an ensemble cast to tell the story of rival gangs, romantic rivals and one mysterious, clueless hitman caught up in the fray. Set in the fictional yet aptly named city of Sukago, the film piles anachronisms atop one another to amusing effect in a unique visual style. Blending modern technology with a latter day costume and set design that bespeak the gang-land stereotypes of the Roaring Twenties, Mitani disorients the viewer in a film itself dependent upon mistaken identities and confused intention. Opening with Bingo (Satoshi Tsumabuki) unwisely making time with crime lord Boss Tessio's girl, the two are caught and given one chance to save their lives. Bingo must produce Della Togashi, a famed assassin unseen for years, and referred to only as a 'Phantom.' Clueless concerning the whereabouts of the real Togashi, Bingo instead pretends to be a director, and hires Taiki Murata (played brilliantly by Koichi Sato), an out-of-work actor, to play the part of the notorious killer in his upcoming movie. Convinced he has accepted the role of a lifetime, Taiki believes hidden cameras film his every move. The zaniness that ensues is nothing short of sidesplitting. 'Della Togashi' struts around the city in affected style, charges into gunfights assuming they are staged, and, believing them all to be extras, begins offering humorous advice to his new criminal friends on how to better 'act' the part of gangsters. Funny, and at the same time a clever interrogation of the relationship between movie-making art and real life, The Magic Hour is a brilliant comedy deserving of a wide audience.

Festival Favorites:
Monday, April 6, 9:15 PM
Ritz 5

Posted by Brian Rouleau @ 3:02 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Comments (0)

Q&A with SHARI SOLANIS: "The goal isn't pornography"
What we're trying to do this weekend
SEXY TIME Q&A: I've never had an orgasm during sex with a man — and I'm 30!
NOW SEE THIS: Transit cop arrests marijuana activist for alleged disorderly conduct.
CONCERT REVIEW: Primus (3D & quadraphonic sound) @ The Tower 10/17
Q&A with Tony Goldwyn: "Life is gray, and relationships are, too"
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: Indian fare rules, Dunder Mifflin lives on, Tom Jones is a god
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: The Archbishop meets the Geator, the Mayor goes suit shopping, Le Bec Fin fin.
Q&A with Goon’s Seann William Scott
CITY PAPER WRITING CONTEST 2013: Send stories! Send poetry!

About this blog

Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

Follow Critical Mass editors Patrick Rapa and Emily Guendelsberger on Twitter:

@mission2denmark | @emilygee

Search this blog:

Topics:

Blog archives:

May
April
March

February
January

Past Archives: