The Techno Brothers (3 Stars)

Every year there's an online Japanese film festival. Click here for information. It's not available to watch everywhere. For instance, it's available in Germany but not in England. The selection of countries seems to be random, but that's what VPNs are for. I've watched the festival in the past, but usually only a few films, because I didn't have enough time. A few years ago the festival only ran for four weeks. Now it lasts three months, from 1st August to 31st October. During this time I can watch any of the twelve films online. I'm starting a month late, but you know my excuses already... holiday and new computer.

The first film I picked was "The Techno Brothers". It's the title that attracted me.

What did I just watch? It's a road movie that contains so many musical numbers that it can rightly be called a musical. The Techno Brothers are three brothers who play music that's a clone of early 80's Kraftwerk. Their music is good, but as persons they're a strange group. They never speak once in the film, they just follow their manager Himuro in silence. They're unable to find success in their hometown of Otawara, so they set out on a journey to Tokyo, playing concerts on the way.

This is where it gets weird. I assumed Otawara would be in the far south of Japan, but it's actually only a hundred miles away. According to Google Maps it's a two hour journey by car. So why do they need more than a week? They could have travelled to Tokyo and back in a day.

Their manager Himuro is beautiful but cold-hearted. She blames the group for their lack of success. Whenever they go to a restaurant she eats a large meal, but the group members are only allowed a glass of tap water. Half way towards Tokyo one of the group dies of starvation, but she remains unmoved. She doesn't have enough money for the funeral, so she burns his body on a tip and continues the jorney.

What's the film about? Is it a criticism of the music industry? I'd call it a comedy, except it isn't funny. I've checked other reviews, and it seems that everyone apart from me likes it, but even the other reviewers don't seem to know what it's about.

It's a poor start to the festival. If I'm disappointed with the next film, I might not make it through all twelve.