Watch Hisao For Free

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

When HISAO begins, the viewer will no doubt be wowed by the visual style of this short film. I have seen hundreds (if not thousands) of shorts and yet this one is unique in style--something I can really appreciate. The film looks as if film of the man has been cut out and then superimposed on the film. I think they actually may have photocopied the film of Hisao and then painstakingly cut it all out (somewhat like the amazing film COPY SHOP--but still quite different). You really have to see it to believe it and the film looks like something you'd see in a modern art gallery.Unfortunately, apart from the arresting visuals, the film itself is amazingly boring and repetitive. You see him eat, move, make music (though you can't hear it) and there is no emotion throughout or interaction with others. It's like he's in his own private little world. And, in an odd touch, when he tires at the end of each day, he's shot with an arrow and falls asleep. Very artsy, yes...but not at all entertaining after the initial shock wears off and the viewer is left to watch long and repetitive bits.This short was in part four of the "Short Cinema Journal"--a film I rented from Netflix but which appears to have originally been a monthly film series for people who like mediocre modern short films AND love to have the DVD chock full of commercials. I have so far tried two of the Journal's DVDs and felt enraged at the horrible way that a viewer needs to navigate the disk in order to see the films. Talk about an over-produced and overly complicated way of doing this! While I have and will continue to see as many shorts as I can, I really doubt if I'll bother with the Journals because of these factors.

An excellent example of an experimental short dense with creative visuals yet simplistic and honorable in story. I hope Sugano continues to write and direct at this level. What stimulating and refreshing work to see! The visuals are crafty, stylistic and amazingly intriguing to look at. So much was said without any dialog. The lead character Hisao Shinagawa, takes us on an imploring journey of his life touching on issues of love, work, pain, history and family. The issues begin separated then bleed together as the film moves forward, incorporating a complete circle of life issues. Everything from the sound (and purposeful lack of) to the editing and performance by Hisao was nothing short of visually compelling and fulfilling.