Overview: Top model and fashion idol Lilico (Erika Sawajiri) is used to being the centre of attention - the living epicentre of her own universe and of a multimedia-saturated hyperreality in which everything is airbrushed and color-adjusted to perfection.

When she begins to suffer traumatic side effects from her repeated illegal cosmetic surgery sessions, she finds fame comes at a cost, as she is plunged into a nightmarish world where her sense of self-image and identity begins to fracture.

This lurid body horror, based on a manga by Kyoko Okazaki and directed by critically acclaimed photographer and filmmaker Mika Ninagawa (Sakuran), is a candy-colored nightmare, presenting both an assault to the senses and to the picture-perfect world of the fashion and advertising.

Blu-ray Verdict: Simply put, Helter Skelter offers a scathing commentary on the state of the culture of celebrity in modern Japan and the commodification of beauty, particularly of youth.

Helter Skelter’s commentary is extremely clear from its outset. The main character, Lilico, has peaked in her popularity and is now facing replacement by models who are younger than her. The film follows her journey, particularly her decline, as she becomes more acutely aware of her disposability in the industry that had created her.

Thus, it’s commentary, while potent, has the issue of being a bit on the explicit side. There are some points where dialogue seems to exist solely to explain what happened or what already happened, particularly at the end with the two police investigators. Rather than relying on implication and visuals along, which are, themselves, fine, the film has the tendency to fall back on dialogue explanations which kill the pacing and make the experience feel like the viewer is being spoon fed information that we were just previously shown.

There are also times when I felt that certain scenes went on too long, but I think the problem stems mostly from scenes of expository dialogue that reiterate what we can already see. The police investigators are the biggest source for this. Their scenes, along with a few others, feel like the point of the film is being painfully reiterated over and over and in the final part of the film, every potential end scene is followed by another; almost as if the film doesn’t want to end. In a way, it starts to dilute its own meaning with its lack of brevity.

The performances and cinematography in this film are great though, for sure. The psychotic, sadistic nature of the main character is played in the same manic way a lot of Japanese films like this are played and it translates here well. The special effects are sparse, but when used, help add to the increasing surreal experiences of the main characters.

Overall, Helter Skelter is a film that feels like it is on the verge of being much more than it ends up being. I feel like the film would have greatly improved from some tightening up in the editing phase and, were it cut down to under two hours, I think would be more impactful than it is in its current state. As a piece of modern Japanese cinema, it isn’t bad and so I would definitely recommend it to anyone who might find this film’s premise interesting. [R.C.]

Bonus Features:
HIGH-DEFINITION BLU-RAY PRESENTATION IN 1.85:1 ASPECT RATIO
5.1 DTS-HD MA AUDIO WITH NEW ENGLISH SUBTITLES
ORIGINAL STEREO AUDIO WITH NEW ENGLISH SUBTITLES
AUDIO COMMENTARY BY TORI POTENZA AND AMBER T.
INTERVIEWS WITH ERIKA SAWAJI AND DIRECTOR MIKA NINAGAWA
BEHIND THE SCENES FOOTAGE OF THE MAKING OF HELTER SKELTER
PRODUCTION SITE PRESS CONFERENCE
JAPANESE PREMIERE STAGE GREETING
OPENING DAY STAGE GREETING
TAIPEI FILM FESTIVAL INTRODUCTION BY MIKA NINAGAWA
STILLS GALLERY
TEASERS AND TRAILERS
BOOKLET ESSAY BY VIOLET BURNS
ORIGINAL AND NEWLY COMMISSIONED ARTWORK BY LUKE INSECT

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