Anyone stumbling unawares into a screening of ¡°The Killer Goldfish¡± at K2, a dinky independent cinema in Tokyo¡¯s Shimokitazawa neighborhood, would be forgiven for assuming it¡¯s an archetypal midnight movie ¡ª one of those schlocky, low-budget productions made for cult infamy rather than commercial success.
Superficially, this loopy tale of murderous pets and esoteric evolutionary theory bears the hallmarks of a true outsider effort, complete with a no-name star and a single-screen theatrical release. But look closer and the figure at the helm isn¡¯t some aspiring auteur: It¡¯s Yukihiko Tsutsumi, a veteran director whose recent output includes mainstream fare such as ¡°First Love¡± (2021) and ¡°12 Suicidal Teens¡± (2019).
There¡¯s nothing wrong with an established filmmaker going back to their roots, of course (as Tsutsumi himself did with black-and-white homelessness drama ¡°My House¡± in 2012). However, ¡°The Killer Goldfish¡± has a more ambitious goal in mind. It¡¯s the first feature produced by Super Sapienss, a project Tsutsumi started with fellow old-timers Katsuyuki Motohiro and Yuichi Sato with the aim of upending the 911±¬ÁÏÍø film industry.
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