THE WEIRD AND WONDERFUL WORLD OF UJICHA
The unkindest cut
Forget everything you think you know about Japanese animation. Director Ujicha’s “geki-mation” films combine illustration and puppetry to unsettling effect.
Violence Voyager sees bullied schoolboy Bobby stumbling across an apparently abandoned amusement park, only to find the robotic attractions are far more dangerous than they seem. Sounds like a kids’ film (Jurassic Park is an influence). But by its final reel there are (meticulously illustrated) naked, mutilated kids everywhere. Definitely not for children.
Likewise, The Burning Buddha Man has teen Beniko stumbling across a bizarre alien cult while trying to avenge her parents’ murders. A straightforward revenge story descends into mayhem, as people and statues are horrifyingly merged together. Fans of Junji Ito will get a kick out of the grotesque imagery, while the painstaking craftsmanship is hypnotic. There’s a real sense of the transgressive here – who knew papercraft could be so upsetting?
Extras The director and producer provide commentary on Violence Voyager. There’s also a self-recorded interview with Ujicha (21 minutes). But the really interesting stuff is an assortment of the director’s early shorts. His style visibly evolves, from the sketchy, scribbly juvenilia of “Space Yokai War” (nine minutes) through “The Retneprac 2” (16 minutes) – better but still wobbly – to “Tempura” (four minutes), which looks pretty slick. Plus: storyboards, trailers.
“Ujicha” (it’s a type of green tea!) worked on Violence Voyager for five years. It was all filmed on the top of a desk.