Fish Story

            It's difficult writing about a movie where everything is confusing as hell until the very end.  You can't talk about the plot without taking the risk of giving away the entire film.  So instead, I'll try to convince you to watch a really good movie without actually talking much about it.

On to the review!

            A friend helpfully requested I review a movie that is not horrible and I gladly added it to my Netflix queue.  Funnily enough, I had already seen it.  Unfunnily enough, I had blanked this amazing film from my mind.  Maybe it was just too good for me?

            It's called Fish Story, a Japanese film released in 2009.  It does not take place in one static time period.  Instead, Fish Story unfolds over a period of decades.

             The basic premise is that the end of the world is nigh due to a huge comet hurtling towards Earth.  The streets are deserted, everything closed except for one lone record store.  A few wanderers make their way there out of curiosity.  There they end up being played a song called Fish Story from an unremembered band that was way ahead of their time.

            The man running the store insists that somehow that song, its very existence, will save the world.

            Sounds pretty weird, right?  How does a song laid down on vinyl end up saving civilization 37 years later?

            Think of Fish Story as Japan's Mulholland Drive, only with an ending that makes sense and with less lesbian nudity.  They both jump around all over the place and they both often leave the viewer scrambling to find purchase.  If you don't pay attention you may end up hopelessly lost.

            What I enjoyed about it most was how well everything interconnects.  Interspersed between scenes of the band working on and recording their song, entire lives unfold around them.  Things happen to people that don't make much sense in context, but at the end of the film everything snaps into focus.

            At times touching and at other times quirky and amusing, Fish Story does its best to keep the viewer's attention through sheer force of will.  A movie like this could have easily become inane or downright terrible but it's to the credit of superb writing and excellent acting that it never falters.  I absolutely love the characters, and the more you learn about the band's history and actions the more you come to enjoy their time on screen.  On my second viewing, I found myself smiling and humming along as they finally record their opus. 

            Is that enough for you?  Does knowing that a movie is worth your time and attention but still not knowing much more than you could cull from Wikipedia or IMDB make you want to see it?  I hope it does.  You really should make time for Fish Story.

            Who knows, it may help you save the world.