The Film: Fish Story
(2009)
The Principals: Atsushi Ito, Kengo Kora, Mikako Tabe, Gaku Hamada. Directed by Yoshihiro Nakamura.
The Premise: A Japanese punk rock band saves the world from an asteroid in 2012.
Is It
Good:
No. It’s amazing. The film weaves a Pulp Fiction-esque non-linear path from a punk band creating a song called “Fish Story” in 1975 all the way till 2012, where an asteroid bears down on the Earth. At its heart it’s a film about the power of music but it also cleverly manages to be a mashup of four different genre films- apocalyptic thriller, horror, kung fu and of course, music doc. It’s to the film’s credit that it manages to meld all the genres and storylines so perfectly and be such a satisfying experience, one where not everything makes sense on the way but it all ties together in the end.
Read my full review here but really, just watch this film as soon as possible.
(2009)
The Principals: Atsushi Ito, Kengo Kora, Mikako Tabe, Gaku Hamada. Directed by Yoshihiro Nakamura.
The Premise: A Japanese punk rock band saves the world from an asteroid in 2012.
Is It
Good:
No. It’s amazing. The film weaves a Pulp Fiction-esque non-linear path from a punk band creating a song called “Fish Story” in 1975 all the way till 2012, where an asteroid bears down on the Earth. At its heart it’s a film about the power of music but it also cleverly manages to be a mashup of four different genre films- apocalyptic thriller, horror, kung fu and of course, music doc. It’s to the film’s credit that it manages to meld all the genres and storylines so perfectly and be such a satisfying experience, one where not everything makes sense on the way but it all ties together in the end.
Read my full review here but really, just watch this film as soon as possible.
Is
It Worth A Look: YES YES A MILLION TIMES YES
Random Anecdotes: The last two years I’ve had the privilege of covering the New York Asian Film Festival for CHUD, and both times I’ve come away with a film that held up as one of my favorites of the year. This year it was Castaway on the Moon, last year it was Fish Story. The worst part after reviewing a great film at a fest is inevitably the wait for the rest of the world to be able to catch up, but thankfully Netflix Instant has picked up Fish Story and is adding it to its Instant Watch selection TOMORROW.
Add this to your queue and fire that sucker up!
Cinematc
Soulmates: Wild Zero, Ju-on, Golden Slumber, Save the Green Planet.
THIS is why I love CHUD. Not only do you alert me to cool obscure flicks but you tell me when they come to Netflix Instant. Thanks Alex!
Thanks for the heads-up! I'll be checking this out tomorrow.
I agree with Craig, this is one of the reasons I visit CHUD everyday; thanks Alex!
Netflix queue updated!
As a gay american, I have a huge crush on Alex. Thanks for this.
Netflix fucked up. The film they uploaded for the Fish Story VOD is not FISH STORY! The film that is available now is "A Fish Story", a 54 minute film produced in 2006 by Sachem Street Films. The content is not related in any way to the Yoshihiro Nakamura film. In fact "A Fish Story" is a documentary about the fishing industry in Massachusetts and it features TED FUCKING KENNEDY! Uh oh Netflix.