Kirei (2004) Ki-re-i?

Movie Rating NR Contains: Strong Language Violence Graphic Violence Gore Sex Nudity Mature Situations

Director: Katsuya Matsumura Movie Genre: Slasher, Exploitation Country: Japan Kirei Score Card The following scores are based on a 0.0 to 10.0 rating scale Hover your mouse pointer over the name of each scoring category below for a description Direction: 2.8 Writing: 4.2 Acting: 3.0 Cinematography: 2.0 Sound and Score: 2.0 Functionality: 4.0 Presentation: 2.0 Genre Comparison: 1.8 General Comparison: 2.0 Overall: 2.6 Reviewed 2005-12-26 03:49:04

Katsuya Matsumura's Kirei is about Yoko, a successful plastic surgeon who is tormented by Yoshie, a patient who is obsessed with becoming beautiful. Yoshie asks Yoko to perform a series of cosmetic surgeries, after-hours and without the aid of nurses, Yoko reluctantly agrees because Yoshie always pays in advance and in full. Yoko soon realizes that Yoshie will always want another operation and decides not to treat her. Yoshie then retaliates by violently lashing out at Yoko and her practice.

This movie has some major flaws. Through voice-over, Yoko tells the story of Yoshie to her boyfriend and then, without warning, the focus of the narration switches to the audience, giving the movie major problems with cohesion. When Yoko is not making people beautiful, she and her boyfriend are having sex. The sex scenes in Kirei were intended to establish Yoko as the embodiment of beauty. Instead these scenes are trashy and exploitative.

The farfetched and improbable ending is this movie's biggest flaw. Perfectly acceptable parts of the narrative turn into enourmous plot holes during the ending sequence. The movie's message is ignored until the end, where the feeble efforts are too little too late.

The quality of the film and camerawork is low budget and amateurish. The blood and makeup effects are unbelievable. The score consists of synthesized whines and screeches and has no sense of composition. This movie fails on almost every possible level.

Kirei attempts to tell a chilling, suspenseful story about obsessions bred from society's preoccupation with beauty. The premise of this movie had a great deal of potential. Perhaps if the film had a larger budget, a different script, and a different cast and crew, Kirei would have accomplished some of its goals and not become a movie to avoid at all costs.