The Forest of Love2019

It's more than 2 hours long but I don't care. If you think Sono's only indulgence are suicide pact, high school girls and over-the-top violence, then I think it's about time that you stop taking his films at face value—there is always more to his cinema than meets the eye. Sono's crazy is imprinted all over this film but he uses that crazy to describe Japan's interesting bipolar culture; their obsession with honor, while deep down being rotten to the core. And let's not forget their obsession with their idols eternal virginal image, while also unabashedly reveling in adult entertainment. Quite confusing, but their art sometimes imitates life and vice versa. This might be Sono's best since Himizu. He goes around blazing his guns and has shot everyone with his greatness. As much as I loathed the film's lead, Murata, and his cunning and manipulative personality, he is in my opinion Sono's on-screen proxy—he brings out the filth, the violent tendencies, the worst in people, and yet we won't deny him and often find ourselves hook, line and sinker with his blend of poison. It's been a while since I waxed poetic about a movie, so it's a real no brainer that this took the number one spot (from Parasite) right off the bat as my favorite for the year. I couldn't relate to any of the characters—their storylines and their insanity; a story like this may cause some head scratching, but there is no doubt that you couldn't fault its execution and how beautiful this crazy story was depicted on screen. Sono flexes the boundless capacities of cinema and uses it to his advantage, freely, openly in wild abandonment and without a care in the world.