Anaraifu
2005 / 83m - Japan
Drama
3.5*/5.0*
Analife poster

Watches

February 05, 2006

4.0*/5.0*

February 24, 2023

3.5*/5.0*

Analife certainly is something. I watched it at the IFFR years ago and never really revisited it since. I can't quite recall if it was a subtitled version, but sadly that doesn't seem to exist anymore. The director is so hell-bent on making this a visual experience that he made a Japanese and English dub, but went against adding subs (as it would detract too much from the visuals). A choice I heavily disagree with.

Three people find themselves in a proctologist's waiting room. They all feel numb inside and they all had some very strange ways to get rid of the numbness, which ultimately leads to them having to visit a proctologist. Person A rapes women, person B photographs corpses, and person C like to rummage through other people's trash.

The visuals are indeed quite intense (though there is a somewhat disappointing cheapness to them), sadly, the dub is pretty bland and it lessens the audiovisual impact of the film. The subject matter is pretty disturbing, but the matter-of-factly presentation makes it somewhat easier to stomach. A fun and interesting experiment that won't be for everybody, but it's definitely worth seeking out if you like oddball cinema.