Kotoko (Tsukamoto, 2011) - #IFFR #Rotterdam

A young mother lives with the threatening delusions that her child might get killed - and her visions become more intense.

The film felt quite normal length but appeared to be "only" 90 minutes long - by today's standards this is now called short :) - I was quite stricken by the story and the performance of the lead character. I've heard that she is not a professional actress but a singer - but she did amazingly well. At many points I could barely watch - not because of the brutal imagery but because some of the stuff she was doing to herself and to others was too weird and frightful. The film left quite a strong afterfeeling.

The ultra-sharp video-like imagery worked quite well for this kind of movie. I really loved the end scene where the "fantasy world" becomes very tangible and there are many amazing scenes. Unfortunately, the singing goes on way too long, but that just might be a concession to the japanese market.

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