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Tetsuo (1989)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Shinya Tsukamoto (writer)
Release Date:
1 July 1989 (Japan)
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Plot:
A strange man known only as the "metal fetishist", who seems to have an insane compulsion to stick scrap metal into his body...
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| full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Metal
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Fetishist
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Transformation
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Japanese
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Telekinesis
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Awards:
2 wins
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NewsDesk:
(34 articles)
The Voice Inside
(From LateFilmFull. 6 November 2009, 1:16 AM, PST)
Sitges ’09: My Sitges Story—Part 10
(From Fangoria. 16 October 2009, 5:02 PM, PDT)
(From LateFilmFull. 6 November 2009, 1:16 AM, PST)
Sitges ’09: My Sitges Story—Part 10
(From Fangoria. 16 October 2009, 5:02 PM, PDT)
User Comments:
Manga-influenced man vs. machine Japanese scifi film with a razor-sharp visual style
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Cast
(Complete credited cast) | Tomorowo Taguchi | ... | Man |
| Kei Fujiwara | ... | Woman |
| Nobu Kanaoka | ... | Woman in Glasses |
| rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Renji Ishibashi | ... | Tramp |
| Naomasa Musaka | ... | Doctor |
| Shinya Tsukamoto | ... | Metals Fetishist |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
67 min | Argentina:69 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival)
Country:
Language:
Colour:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Dead or Alive: Final (2002)
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FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (118 total)
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It's so visually striking that you could never fully describe Tetsuo in words. But here are a few that apply: Japanese, hyperactive, perverse, industrial, surreal, Faustian bargain, contrasty, black-and-white, Kafkaesque, scifi, stop-motion, manga-influenced, revenge, technology, alienation, supervillains.
Shinya Tsukamoto is an actor (he's the antagonistic "Metals Fetishist" here as well as Jijii in Ichi the Killer) as well as a ground-breaking writer/director/cinematographer. Tetsuo's influence can be seen clearly in directors as diverse as Darren Aronofsky, Takashi Miike, and even David Cronenberg.
There is definitely a plot, but due to the non-linear editing and sparsity of dialogue you'll need to pay close attention on a first viewing or else you'll be overwhelmed by the engrossing visual style (which might be a good thing). It's filmed in contrasty black-and-white. Each frame is cramped and chaotic, much of the time it's filled with wires, pipes, chain-link fences, and all the other incidental debris of life in the late 20th century... which suddenly seems significant and even menacing.
Towards the fifty-minute mark (it's 67 min. total) the willful excess starts to feel a little too excessive, perhaps the manga influence is a bit too strong. But Tetsuo finishes strong, with an end that's at once unexpected and inevitable. Highly recommended.