Kamen Byoto is a solid mystery thriller with a great cast.

 

I decided to cover another thriller after having enjoyed watching Blind Witness last week. This time around, I picked something that wasn't a remake of a Korean movie and instead is based on a novel. Based on the 2014 novel written by author, former medical doctor, Mikito Chinen, Kamen Byoto came out back in 2020 and was directed by Hisashi Kimura. At the time, Kimura was known for dramas such as 99.9 Keiji Senmon Bengoshi and was just starting out on directing movies. Together, Chinen and Kimura co-wrote the screenplay, alongside Shota Koyama and Era Itaru. 

Doctor Shugo Hayami is approached by his senior and would-be brother in law, Tsukata Kosakai, who asks if he is willing to take over his nigh shift at the Todokoro hospital. Todokoro is a former mental hospital that was converted into a nursing hospital mainly for dementia patients. Shugo Hayami accepts. His shift goes well into he receives a sudden call from nurse Ryoko Higashino. Hagashino tells Shugo to go down to the first floor to which Shugo complies. Once he arrives, he is greeted by a man in a Pierrot mask who demands that he operates on a university student that he has shot. 

Being a fan of Hisashi Kimura's work on the drama 99.9 Keiji Senmon Bengoshi, I was eager to see how well he'd adapt to making a movie. I think he did a competent job. He made use of a wide variety of shot types, camera movements and various angles to frame the narrative. There's some rather subtle shaky camera movements to give certain scenes that little bit of extra tension as well as some handheld camera shots that give them a raw, almost documentary type feel. There's also some fast paced composition work and in combination with some slick editing techniques and visual effects, create neat little flashback sequences. What stood out was the usage of what seemed to be a Dutch angle for one particular shot that looked down upon Shugo Hayami and Hitomi Kawasaki from the hospital staircase. My favourite shot was the simple 180 degree panning shot that introduced Shugo Hayami, I thought it was a cool shot that established that he was the main lead really well. I feel like the cinematography was lacking that special something though, like more dynamism and usage of colour grading to really make the movie much more tense and eerie. 

I thought that the movie was pretty well written in regards to the overall mystery and unfolding story. The narrative is more layered than I had initially expected and unfolds at a slow, but enjoyable pace that is helped by the editing. It is a nice slow burner that is slow enough to allow the story to breathe without being overly so to the point of being dull. I did manage to successfully guess some of the plot twists, including that of what was happening at the hospital itself due to being careful attention to detail in every scene I possibly could. This didn't take away from my enjoyment however, and I failed to identify who was behind the Pierrot mask. I also rather enjoyed the moral quandary posed by the narrative with it not being all black and white.

What it didn't do well was in the murders themselves. All of the shown murders happen with the killer using weapons without wearing a pair of gloves. This would be rather silly as it would leave obvious fingerprints that the police could use to identify and apprehend the suspect rather swiftly. Also of note is just how lenient and nice the Pierrot mask gun wielder is as a hostage taker. He allowed the hostages to wander quite freely around the hospital with little supervision. This could have gotten him subdued or even killed if they collected weapons and ganged up on him.

The two main leads, Shugo Hayami and Hitomi Kawasaki were written quite well. Both had complex backstories, which saw each lose someone precious. This allowed the pair to bond and is the catalyst for Shugo Hayami stepping up and doing what he can to protect Hitomi from the Pierrot mask wearing gunman. Well, it also helped that she reminded him of his wife-to-be by repeating the phrase "It hurts". That same phrase was what Yoko had been saying before her death in the car accident. Prior to that, he was a man that blamed himself for Yoko's death, living with guilt and shame to which Kosakai had tried to pull him out of. It also helps establish motives and characterisations of both as well as build an emotional connection with the audience. 

Kentaro Sakaguchi convincingly portrayed the role of Shugo Hayami. In his really early scenes with Kosakai, his guilt really came across via his excellent use of body language as well as the inflection and tone of his voice. I felt for him. His evolution also was really well portrayed as it was noticeable. 

Likewise, Mei Nagano proved that she is a fine actress with her portrayal of Hitomi Kawasaki. I felt bad for her in her early scenes as she was really cute and did a tremendous job at portraying the scared student. She handled the duality of the character's persona rather convincingly. 

Overall, Kamen Byoto is a solid mystery thriller with a great, talented cast and a competent director. It's not the greatest movie ever, not even the greatest thriller, but it is still worth a watch in my humble opinion. If you like thrillers with some twists and turns, then it might be the movie for you.