Goodbye Cruel World is an intriguing crime drama with an A-list cast.

 

Today's blog post features a movie that caught my attention due to the A-list cast and the very interesting premise. Goodbye Cruel World is a crime drama that was directed by acclaimed arthouse filmmaker Tatsushi Omori and was written by Ryo Takada. Did the movie live up to my expectations? Let's find out! 

The plot of the movie focuses on a group of robbers. There are 5 heist members and they for the most part hardly know one another. The designated driver is illegal taxi driver, Koichiro Mutoh, a man on the verge of bankruptcy after having been laid off. Leading the gang is former Yakuza member, Mikiya Anzai. Then there's physical labourer and former politician's secretary, Shigeru Hamada, a poor prostitute named Miru Sakaguchi and loose cannon, gun-for-hire, Masaharu Hagiwara. 

The 5 rob a love hotel in which a local Yakuza organisation, the Sugiyama-gumi, launders money with the help of the front desk clerk, Daiki Yano who provides the group with inside information. As one might expect, the Sugiyama-gumi oyabun is furious and tasks corrupt detective, Kazuo Hachiya to track the gang down one by one. The main focus of the movie was not that of the love hotel heist itself, but rather the unfortunate aftermath.

What I enjoyed the most about Goodbye Cruel World is some of the excellent character work. For instance, Mikiya Anzai is a very compelling character as he uses the money he took from the heist in order to rebuild his relationship with his young daughter and estranged wife. As a former Yakuza, he wants nothing more than to live an ordinary life much like any other citizen in Japan and yet, due to his past, his neighbours cannot trust him and refuse to give him a chance at redemption. I couldn't help, but to root for the guy, especially in the confrontation with a former member of his Yakuza organisation, Iijima. Iijima attempted to undermine all of Anzai's hard work out of spite and as revenge for his past actions. Iijima deserved what he got imo. 

Another compelling character is the detective working for the Sugiyama-gumi, Kazuo Hachiya. He's a much more complicated character than what he appears on the surface. From his introduction, we see that he's deeply integrated with the Yakuza, carrying out work for the gangsters and this establishes his corruption. Later on in the movie however, he begins to have a change of heart and becomes antagonistic with his Yakuza employers, especially Ogata. He seems to empathise with Anzai, Miru and Yano as he engages in polite conversation with the latter and finds the former more interesting than Sugiyama. 

Tatsushi Omori knows how to direct a compelling drama narrative and it shows. The editing and pacing of the movie are on point, even if certain parts felt like they dragged in my personal opinion. The cinematography was solid if unspectacular, with much more static shots than I was expecting. That's not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself as when framed well, static shots can be beautiful. The best camera work came in the form of dynamic camera movement with some superbly timed utilisation of effects such as slow motion during the sequences of violence. When combined with the usage of slightly dark-tinged colour schemes and lighting, it created a visual treat. My personal favourite shot of the movie actually came within the climax. 2 of the main characters are leant against a railing with a picturesque backdrop of the sea behind them as they engage in some compelling dialogue before the camera pans to reveal the approaching Yakuza. 

What I didn't like was the soundtrack. The American music felt very out of place, taking away any sense of immersion within the setting. It felt like the movie was trying to imitate Tarantino too much and was just plain silly imo. Why would they use American music when they could highlight some talented Japanese bands that could use a boost in recognition? I just don't get it. 

I also felt like the romantic relationship between Miru and Yano was underdeveloped. The pair end up together, but it never felt all that natural to me as the script didn't allow them to showcase enough moments of romance and attraction. Instead, the duo bond simply due to the murder spree they went on within the café. It also didn't help that that particular scene took away any sympathy that I had for the pair whilst killing off one of the much more fun characters of the movie. 

Performance wise, the standouts for me were Hidetoshi Nishijima, Nao Omori and Takumi Saito. Nishijima-san delivered a fine, composed performance as Anzai in what was a difficult role to portray convincingly. He had me sympathising with his plight and rooting for him. Omori-san once again proved that he's a consistent actor as he put in another splendid performance in a role that could have been forgettable if the wrong actor were cast. Saito-san was one of the highlights of the movie for me as he delivered a strong performance that was a joy to watch.  

Overall, I think that Goodbye Cruel World was solid, but unspectacular and could have been better. I'd recommend it to those who enjoy crime dramas, but temper your expectations a bit as it's not on the level of Korou no Chi amongst others.