by Heath Lynch, Contributing Writer
A few years back, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi dazzled us with the thoughtful, challenging, and introspective Drive My Car. This masterpiece was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Picture at the Oscars, and it took home the gold for Best International Feature Film. So, almost needless to say, Hamaguchi’s follow up to such an acclaimed film would most certainly have a lot of attention hoisted upon it. Well, here it is: Evil Does Not Exist. And while the rest of the world appears to be fawning themselves over this new film, I am here to be the harbinger of harsh truths and let you know — this movie is not good.
But I’m going to break the cardinal rule here for a moment: I’m going to bury the lead. I’m going to tease you, peruser of film reviews, and get to the derogatory comments later on. Because first and foremost, there is a decent amount of praise that I still wish to heap upon Hamaguchi and his film.
As much as I have issues with Evil Does Not Exist, there are elements that are completely outstanding. Hamaguchi’s directorial eye, in conjunction with Yoshio Kitagawa’s outstanding cinematography, makes this film a visual feast. There are haunting, lingering shots, gorgeous frames that you’ll want to hang on your wall, and a melding of brilliant colors that do well to highlight the setting, which in turn highlights the themes and narrative of the film. The blood red leaves in the trees, the golden straw field, and the frozen blue pond all paint vivid images in your mind that will leave a lasting impression. Another element that’s bound to stick with you is Eiko Ishibashi’s score, which perfectly encapsulates the eeriness of many scenes. Though the film and score are edited in such a way that it harshly cuts off the music at awkward moments, stunting its larger potential impact, it’s still very moving.
More than anything, there is an almost 30 minute long town hall sequence in the middle of this film that’s absolutely riveting. The overall narrative largely focuses on a small, rural Japanese village that relishes the peace and tranquility that its community offers. However, a wealthy corporation wants to take advantage of government subsidies and build an elaborate glamping site in the heart of this quiet community, disturbing not just the villagers’ way of life, but the very nature around them. Narratively, this town hall scene gives the local citizens the opportunity to air their grievances, provides us with some of the best tension and dialogue in the entire film. Every second of this scene is gripping. The characters, the dialogue, the performances — it reminds us of what’s possible when Hamaguchi is firing on all cylinders.
Outside of these aspects? This film is irreparably damaged by its script, and does not remotely earn its pacing, as its slow burn tendencies devolve into boredom. Underdeveloped characters and relationships, and numerous unresolved storylines, leave it feeling at best like a first draft, and at worst an outline. So now it’s time to dive into why this is not a good movie…
From now on, until forever more, I will always have a film to cite when talking about a film that is thematically rich yet completely devoid of merit. A movie that’s so concerned with metaphor and analogy, which it does a terrific job with, that it utterly fails structurally and narratively. Evil Does Not Exist does a lot with the conflict between humanity and nature. About the sudden violence of progress to an existing community. What it means to wound someone, whether it be an animal, a person, or a community, and the impulsive and aggressive manner in which these things will fight back and defend themselves. This part of the movie excels. It’s aces. But great themes don’t make for a great movie on its own. There also needs to be a great story, and there isn’t one here, because the movie is too focused on its themes, metaphors, and analogies.
This narrative is a series of red herrings and completely unresolved storylines. Not to spoil the movie, but… the glamping site, and the company looking to move in on this village? Who knows what will happen? The movie certainly doesn’t know. The complaints the citizens make at the town hall appear to fall on deaf ears, but do they? And what about the main character and his daughter? There’s a massive tonal shift in the third act related to a twist in plot that has nothing to do with anything we’d previously seen before. What happens to them? What happens to the members of the company who were out there to help? The movie doesn’t care… about any of this. It cares about gut-shot deer, and what that represents. But does this movie care about resolving literally a single element of its narrative structure?
No, it doesn’t.
I say all of this without even getting into this ending and how it undeniably feels like it was added for shock value, rather than the desire to tell a cohesive story. When I say that it doesn’t fit the rest of the film, I mean it does not fit. It’s such a disappointment. I would’ve thought Hamaguchi was above this, but apparently not. Hamaguchi decided it was better to completely change his film from a contemplative drama to an attempted murder thriller, and then not resolve any of the story elements of either of the two completely different tonal films in one.
These narrative blunders leave room for a lot of lulls as well, since nothing is ever resolved, making the pacing drag interminably. I know some feel this is a slow burn character study, and there are instances where I would agree. But on the whole, this movie overstays its welcome, which is shocking given that it’s only 106 minutes long. There are too many moments that are just too damn boring. I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of audiences get bored, or even fall asleep, through portions of the film.
I don’t care how great your direction is, how beautiful the visuals are, how thematically rich your film is, or even how great and subtle some of these performances are — if your story doesn’t work, your movie doesn’t work. This script, this story, categorically doesn’t work. Because it’s not a complete story. It’s the first half of a story, and then the movie just… ends.
I absolutely love Drive My Car, and I was really looking forward to Evil Does Not Exist. I wanted so badly for it to work. But unfortunately, despite my desire to love it, and so many positive reviews from others, I truly feel that this film is a massive misfire.
Rating: Low Side of Didn’t Like It
Evil Does Not Exist is currently playing in theaters
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You are too generous. This movie was incompetent especially the
cinematography and editing. Cut all the wood chopping and choppy tracking shots and you have nothing. If you want to see a slow, contemplative film set in Japan, choose ‘Perfect Days’