I've just had a very enjoyable first viewing of 'Pale Flower', a Japanese film-noir/crime flick, beautifully shot in black and white about a gangster named Muraki who gets out of prison and meets an adrenaline junkie named Saeko, a beautiful young woman who loves to take risks.
The film has a very unsettling and tense vibe most of the time, helped by the amazing soundtrack (that intro sequence was something else!). The cinematography is also lovely although I must admit I have a penchant for well lit black and white films. The plot is pretty straight-forward, has very little in terms of surprises and it is very much a vehicle to explore Muraki's and Saeko's characters.
Definitely a film I'd recommend!
8/10.
The film has a very unsettling and tense vibe most of the time, helped by the amazing soundtrack (that intro sequence was something else!). The cinematography is also lovely although I must admit I have a penchant for well lit black and white films. The plot is pretty straight-forward, has very little in terms of surprises and it is very much a vehicle to explore Muraki's and Saeko's characters.
Definitely a film I'd recommend!
8/10.