Written and Edited By Grave Reviews Staff
Film Information
Director: Takashi Miike
Producer: Satoshi Fukushima, Akemi Suyama
Screenplay: Daisuke Tengan
Novel: Audition by Ryu Murakami
Date Released: October 2, 1999
Cast:
Eihi Shina as Asami Yamazaki
Ryo Ishibashi as Shigeharu Aoyama
Jun Kunimura as Yasuhisa Yoshikawa
Tetsu Sawaki as Shigehiko Aoyama
Miyuki Matsuda as Ryoko Aoyama
Toshie Negishi as Rie
Shigeru Saiki as Toastmaster
Ken Mitsuishi as Director
Ren Ohsugi as Shimada
Renji Ishibashi as Old man in wheelchair
Rating = 3/5 Graves
**^May contain some spoilers***
Synopsis
Years earlier, Shigeharu (Ryo Ishibashi), lost his wife. Left with his son, Shigehiko (Tetsu Sawaki) , Shigeharu decides that he wants to date and remarry. His friend, Yasuhisa (Jun Kunimura) who is a film producer, decides to hold an audition in order for Shigeharu to meet a girl that he likes. When Shigeharu finds a young girl named Asami (Eihi Shiina), he is infatuated by her. But what he doesn’t know is that she has a dark and disturbing past.
Gore Factor
Audition has very few gore scenes until the very end of the film. Towards the end, there are some graphic depictions of tortures and mutilated people. In addition, there is a notable torture scene involving Asami and Shigeharu within the last thirty minutes of Audition. This particular scene is drawn out and intended to be disturbing.
The Grave Review
Audition (1999) was very well-done. However, the amount of time it took to develop the characters felt extremely drawn out. It took about forty-five minutes for the viewer to be introduced to Shigeharu’s love interest, Asami. The remainder of the film focused on the relationship between Shigeharu and Asami. As a result, one flaw was the length of time it took for the storyline to progress which took away from some of the engagement in the film.
Despite the fact that the film felt drawn out, the way the plot was executed was also well-done. As the viewer, you felt engrossed in the film and wanted to find out what, if anything, is going to happen to Shigeharu and more importantly, who Asami truly is. The awkward tension that Asami depicts, gives the viewers an uncomfortable feeling and adds to the overall tone of the film.
Many sources have classified Audition within the horror genre. However, the film felt less like a horror film and more like a suspense thriller. That being said, the film is worth a watch.
For the above reasons, Grave Reviews gives Audition (1999), three and one-half graves out of five graves.
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You may also like our review on the 2016 film, The Wailing.
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