If loneliness, isolation, and despair was something tangible, something to be touched and felt, I can imagine it would look fairly close to the whole of Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s 2001 “J-horror” film Pulse (originally known as Kairo).
Pulse is filmed almost entirely in murky, dreary tones and somehow seems to be caliginous even when the majority of the backgrounds are white. Dull, indirect lighting, overcast skies (has anyone actually seen the sun in Japan?) and fluorescent lighting illuminate the film. By the end, you yourself may bear more than a passing resemblance to the poor soul on the cover of the DVD.
Yet, Pulse is a psychological horror film of the subtlest order. A film that unfortunately took five years to cross the ocean and where cinematic trends are concerned, five years might as well be a lifetime. It’s late arrival among the glut of Asian horror films and their boring remakes might elicit some yawns among the more jaded which would be a real shame because it’s one of the more though-provoking of the bunch and doesn’t hinge on cheap scares.
It must be said that fully-fleshed out characters are no where to be found in this film and nor are any really justified. Only the most meager of motivations seem to be instilled into these characters. Certainly, the commonality between these characters may suggest we take them as a whole. Kurosawa might be saying that society is the character here. And I think it’s fairly clear that Kurosawa is intending that technology is the villain and that the supernatural events are only the cause and effect.
People are now able to continually exist with only the minimum of human contact. Human interaction and communication is becoming a lost art. Kurosawa addresses this in the most extreme way. Pulse is full of silence, characters that are unable and unwilling to make connections. Does Kurosawa think this loss of interaction could lead to our downfall? Maybe he thinks it already has.
Pulse is presented in 1.78:1 widescreen and is enhanced for widescreen televisions. One thing that you will notice right away is that the film has extreme lighting levels. But don’t rush to change the brightness settings just yet. No doubt, Kurosawa played with the dichotomy of lighting intentionally to keep the viewer unsettled. A lot of the action happens in the shadows and murk, and it’s sometimes hard to distinguish what’s going on, yet at other times the image is too bright. As the film plays out, these lighting levels slowly level out. Could this possibly be to convey two very different worlds melding into one? I personally think it’s the right decision but I’m sure there will be some who find these sudden changes in clarity annoying.
Unfortunately, Magnolia only provides us with a rather disappointing Dolby Stereo track. I find this all the more disconcerting considering I own a previous Region 3 release that sports a fine 5.1 track. With a film like this, the difference between a Stereo track and a 5.1 track is fairly sizable. Pulse is a film that relies on ambiance and mood and the 5.1 track goes a long way in establishing that. I’m chalking this up as a major oversight on Magnolia’s part on not trying to attain the 5.1 track that’s obviously out there somewhere.
The extra features consist of a 40-minute behind-the-scenes featurette that consists of the usual making-of elements, shot set-ups and that sort. Most of this featurette is pretty extraneous but it is fascinating to see Kurosawa at work and the few interview segments with him do shed some light on how his mind works. There is a trailer for the film that I suggest be viewed after seeing the film if you want to go in spoiler-free and some trailers for other Magnolia films.
Kiyoshi Kurosawa has always been a fascinating filmmaker for me but he’s definitely not for everybody. His films are methodically paced, always lyrical and sometimes impenetrable and frustratingly devoid of easy answers. Yet he always creates a world that intrigues me be it his ode to the serial killer genre, 1997’s Cure (probably his most commercial film with obvious inspirations from Seven), 1999’s Charisma (the story of a man and his, um, tree) to 2003’s Bright Future (an intriguing film on the growing cultural divide between the young and old generations of Japan).
Pulse is no exception and fits in perfectly with the rest of his esoteric filmography. Do not go into this film expecting Ringu, Dark Water or The Eye, for this film isn’t about obvious scares of the Boo! Variety - although it certainly has its fair share of images that might keep you up at night. So whatever the pros and cons of those films are, Pulse is a different beast all together and has more in common with early Cronenberg (think Videodrome) than it’s recent geographical brethren. Pulse is a film that demands a little more from its audience and will reward those with patience. And in these trying times where films like Venom and Cry-Wolf dare call themselves horror; this I think is a good thing.
Pulse is now available at Amazon . It is available for pre-order at AmazonUK for a March 21st release. Visit the DVD’s database for more information.
USA
Your Talkback on this Story