Hellevator-
The Bottled Fools
 (aka Gusher No Binds Me, 2004)
(2004)
review by Don't Feed the Dead

The third film from the mid twenties director Hiroki Yamaguchi, The Bottled Fools, is a testament that Japanese horror is not on its way out of the market any time soon. Utilizing a micro-budget and confining the bulk of the film's action to a single 8 x 10 elevator carriage, Yamaguchi created one of the most visually stunning and psychologically disturbing films to hit the Asian market in recent years.

The Bottled Fools recants the story of a teenage schoolgirl named Luchino, who apparently had a bout with psychosis and is still under the close watch of her doctor. Living in what seems to be a post-apocolyptic world underground, Luchino struggles to regain normality in a society relegated to the confines of dank tunnels and an oppressive security force. One day on the way to school, Luchino enters an elevator transport that would inadvertantly make her relive her past, as well as dictate the future for the other passengers.

Being the only source for transportation other than foot in the underground, the elevators are often accosted by the Surveillance squads to transport prisoners from cell to disposal. Luchino just so happens to be on the elevator when the squad brings aboard 2 criminals: a bombing suspect and a repeated rapist. As Luchino soon finds out, she is able to see into a person's soul when they open their mouth. Staring into the past of the criminals, Luchino's past memories of her father begin to stir, causing a minor mental breakdown. When the Surveillance officer gets a bit rough with the criminals for intimidating the other passengers, things go awry in the elevator shaft. After a sudden explosion, the elevator is thrown in disarray and the criminals get loose.

Suffering another mental breakdown, Luchino dispatches one of the criminals with the Surveillance officers gun, much to the horror of the other passengers. Soon after, Luchino's mental instability begins to affect the other passengers with each of their dark secrets slowly being revealed. With the Surveillance officer and one criminal dead, the elevator room begins to reek of death. A smell that not only brings Luchino's past to light, but her own dark secrets unto the other passengers in the carriage.

Although I'm not huge fan of CG work and Matrix-style filmmaking, I found Yamaguchi's use of these exploits simply breathtaking. The stop motion and 360 degree photography was spared for key moments of the action, leaving the down and dirty stuff for old school special effects. Since the confines of the film took place in such small quarters, the action sequences were fast paced, edgy and indeed very brutal. As much as this film was intended to be a psychological thriller, the over the top bloodshed and violence make The Bottled Fools a fierce horror film. To get an idea of what kind of film this is, think Ichi the Killer without Miike's humorous side crossed with the climax of All Night Long volume 1. A very brutal and harrowing film, The Bottled Fools is an experience that an audience won't soon forget.

Flying relatively low on the radar screen, this film didn't get the promotion and hype that it rightfully deserves. In a time where the Asian film market is at a deep lull, I would have expected to see a great deal of spotlight on The Bottled Fools due to its great storyline and plethora of visual disturbance. Alas, this will be yet another Asian masterpiece that will have to thrive on word of mouth and reviews such as this one to gain the notriety it deserves.