Tokyo! directors: Bong Joon-Ho, Leo Carax, Michel Gondry
One of the strangest anthology films of recent memory, Tokyo! unites the distinctive visions of three individualistic filmmakers: Michel Gondry, Leos Carax and Bong Joon-Ho. Each short explores Japan's central metropolis through surrealist plots and alienated characters. Needless to say, it's not your average tourist video. Here, the directors explain themselves.
MICHEL GONDRY: "Interior Design"
Initially, I wrote a story about this guy who tried to seduce his ex-girlfriend by buying a horse for her. He has this horse in his garden in Tokyo. It was pretty advanced. I think everybody preferred the chair story.
I always liked this story. It starts with something you can't understand. She slowly and painfully turns into this thing. We talked about Kafka, but I was most thinking about Pinocchio. The first time I saw the Italian version of Pinocchio in 1973—the puppet turned into a little boy with no special effects, but the sound of the wooden legs kicking the floor was really scary to me. It's part of your body degrading. I was thinking of David Cronenberg's manicured gore style in The Fly. Also, Roman Polanski's Repulsion and the degradation of one's mental state.
I think we got influenced by the city without necessarily knowing it. Leo reacted in opposition to it—but when you react in opposition, you get influenced. It's exactly the same thing with your parents. You get influenced by them no matter what you do. My favorite part in his film is when people in Tokyo describe the monster. It's very Japanese, although he'll tell you it has nothing to do with Tokyo.
LEOS CARAX: "Merde"
The film is not about Tokyo. I have no fascination with Tokyo. When the producers proposed that I write something very fast to be shot in Tokyo, I said yes, just to get back to work. The story didn't have anything to do with Tokyo. It could have been any big city in the world. It's not a filmmaker's project; it's a producer's project. I did use some elements from Japan—that it's an island, being repressed, having almost no foreigners. It's a very racist, conservative country. It's all about regression. Merde [the troll character] is a child. The whole society around him is childish. I think this came from a time of fear—of terrorism, of war, and how we all regressed around that to a bunch of children in the dark.
BONG JOON-HO: "Shaking Tokyo"
I’ve been to Tokyo quite often, but all of my trips there have been for some sort of business: To promote my movies, or to shoot this film. Even in a supposedly crowded place, everybody’s like an island in Tokyo. I don’t know if it’s because Japan itself is an huge island. Like commuters on the morning train, I notice people are trying very hard not to touch others. I’m not saying this has a negative connotation, since I think I might be just that kind of person as well. So I find myself feel very comfortable being in Tokyo. So I thought [the main character] hikikomori should be a very good example that shows the characters of Tokyo and the people living in that city. I personally like Tokyo very much. The food is great.
MICHEL GONDRY: "Interior Design"
Initially, I wrote a story about this guy who tried to seduce his ex-girlfriend by buying a horse for her. He has this horse in his garden in Tokyo. It was pretty advanced. I think everybody preferred the chair story.
I always liked this story. It starts with something you can't understand. She slowly and painfully turns into this thing. We talked about Kafka, but I was most thinking about Pinocchio. The first time I saw the Italian version of Pinocchio in 1973—the puppet turned into a little boy with no special effects, but the sound of the wooden legs kicking the floor was really scary to me. It's part of your body degrading. I was thinking of David Cronenberg's manicured gore style in The Fly. Also, Roman Polanski's Repulsion and the degradation of one's mental state.
I think we got influenced by the city without necessarily knowing it. Leo reacted in opposition to it—but when you react in opposition, you get influenced. It's exactly the same thing with your parents. You get influenced by them no matter what you do. My favorite part in his film is when people in Tokyo describe the monster. It's very Japanese, although he'll tell you it has nothing to do with Tokyo.
LEOS CARAX: "Merde"
The film is not about Tokyo. I have no fascination with Tokyo. When the producers proposed that I write something very fast to be shot in Tokyo, I said yes, just to get back to work. The story didn't have anything to do with Tokyo. It could have been any big city in the world. It's not a filmmaker's project; it's a producer's project. I did use some elements from Japan—that it's an island, being repressed, having almost no foreigners. It's a very racist, conservative country. It's all about regression. Merde [the troll character] is a child. The whole society around him is childish. I think this came from a time of fear—of terrorism, of war, and how we all regressed around that to a bunch of children in the dark.
BONG JOON-HO: "Shaking Tokyo"
I’ve been to Tokyo quite often, but all of my trips there have been for some sort of business: To promote my movies, or to shoot this film. Even in a supposedly crowded place, everybody’s like an island in Tokyo. I don’t know if it’s because Japan itself is an huge island. Like commuters on the morning train, I notice people are trying very hard not to touch others. I’m not saying this has a negative connotation, since I think I might be just that kind of person as well. So I find myself feel very comfortable being in Tokyo. So I thought [the main character] hikikomori should be a very good example that shows the characters of Tokyo and the people living in that city. I personally like Tokyo very much. The food is great.
