The Bird People in China

Fans of director Takashi Miike who go into this film expecting his standard helpings of gory, demented excess and aggressive weirdness may end up scratching their heads when the film is over. This is a wild card in the deck of a filmmaker who is, himself, one of the wildest cards in the contemporary film scene. In this lovely, meditative work, Miike shows a side to his filmmaking that most viewers might not believe existed.

And yet, the film fits easily into his thematic obsessions. One staple of many of his movies is the clash between seemingly incongrous cultures and narrative elements. Yet again, these are the themes that propel the plot in The Bird People in China. And for those who like to point out Miike's inability to tell a good, coherent story, this film is a splash of cold water in the face.

Based on a novel by the Japanese travel writer Makoto Shiina, The Bird People In China is the story of a young businessman (Masahiro Motoki) who is sent by his company to examine a remote area of China that is reportedly rich in jade. Also making the trip is a yakuza (no Miike film is complete without one) played by Renji Ishibashi and a Chinese/Japanese translator, Shen, played by the character actor Mako (who, arguably, enjoys his finest role since his Oscar nominated turn in The Sand Pebbles almost forty years ago).

A number of incidents underline the culture difference the characters will have to endure: an encounter with a pair of Chinese travellers who insist on playing a Japanese pop song to Motoki, the decreasingly reliable nature of the transportation the trio has to endure during their travels, and a storm that washes away most of their links to Japan and their original "mission" out into the wilderness.

Finally, arriving in the village they had set out to find, they discover a sort of Shangri-La, complete with an exotic hostess (Li Li Wang), and the granddaughter of a British pilot (another detail underlining the clash of cultures) who literally "fell from the sky." Her obsessions include a Scottish folk song and a belief that she can teach the children of this village how to fly using techniques that her grandfather taught her (and we're not talking airplanes here).

The film is lyrical, hopeful, and as far from the gleeful, savagely weird style of Miike's other work as we've seen thus far. Even his "sweeter" films, like The Happiness of the Katakuris, tend to have more than their share of punk sensibility but Miike works in a softer pitch here, developing full character arcs for all of his main characters with a compassionate eye.

In both the commentary by Tom Mes (who literally wrote the book on Miike, titled "Agitator") and the brief interview with the director, it is pointed out that the film (released in 1998 in Japan) marked a turning point in Miike's career, since his deft handling of a tricky subject in a difficult location with a low budget opened up the eyes of critics and producers in Japan.

Mes' scholarly commentary also provides an understanding of the actors' careers. Basically, Masahiro Motoki, the film's lead, is the Mark Wahlberg of Japan. He started his career in a boy band, became a fashion model, and finally worked his way into being a respected character actor.

Also included are some other well-thought out extras, such as a brief look at "Annie Laurie," the Scottish ballad that figures heavily into the second half of the film. This feature includes two sets of alternate lyrics and a brief history of the song and its use in other film (it was the basis for a Lillian Gish vehicle). Press materials, the film's trailer, and previews for the three films in Miike's Black Society trilogy (which is also available in a spiffy DVD box set from the same company) round out the extras.

If you're a fan of the director, you have to check this movie out to see a different side of him at work. If you're not a fan of his, you should take a look at the film and see if it changes your mind about Miike. And, if you've never heard of him before seeing this film, a word of warning: it could be like an unsuspecting family stumbling onto John Waters' Hairspray and wondering what other movies this guy has made. -- Christopher Hyatt