The Happiness of the Katakuris (2001) Review: OMGWTFBBQ
“The hills are alive with the sound of screaming”Synopsis: A family moves to the country to run a rustic mountain inn when, to their horror, the customers begin befalling sudden and unlikely fates. | ![]() Watch now on Amazon |
Calamity Brains:
My task here is a difficult one: how on Earth do I explain The Happiness of the Katakuris in a way that captures the essence of the film? Ultimately, Codex Mortis reviews are meant to help you, dear reader, determine if you will like a movie. So with that in mind, here is a list of things you should probably like before attempting to watch this movie:
- any other Takashi Miike film
- Monty Python
- black comedies
- Weekend at Bernie’s
- musicals
The Happiness of the Katakuris is a mixed-medium black comedy with family drama and no small amount of singing and dancing. There’s very little logic or rhyme or reason to the plot, and story lines often lack follow-through. It often feels more like a collection of interrelated skits than a coherent movie, especially when Miike goes full-on crazy and throws in a claymation sequence or a karaoke number.
If you have a high tolerance for absurdity and a dark sense of humor, you might enjoy The Happiness of the Katakuris. Personally, I found that while I laughed loudly (and often), I was still regularly distracted by the poor production quality and awkwardly-connected skits. It was a fun movie that I would watch again, but I can’t in good faith rate it too highly – it’s too much of a train wreck. A purposeful train wreck, but a train wreck nonetheless.
Proceed with caution on this one, guys.
Calamity Brains’ Rating: C+
Watch now on Amazon
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