A dysfunctional love story with suicide subplots and darkly comedic yakuza connections, Last Life in the Universe jumbles its chronology (the title credit appears 30 minutes into the film), includes a cameo by Japanese cult-movie director Takashi Miike, and features a touch of magic realism. Pen-Ek Ratanaruang's intriguing Thai romance will either hook you with its hypnotic pacing or bore you to tears, but film buffs will be lured by the presence of Japanese star Asano Tadanobu, the cinematography of Christopher Doyle, and Ratanaruang's narrative, which chronicles a curious sort-of romance between a slovenly girl in Bangkok and a former yakuza soldier turned compulsively tidy librarian. For others, however, the glacial pacing and somewhat rarefied atmosphere will make this rough going. A semi-audacious art-house curio that adds to the rising profile of Thai cinema, this is recommended, overall. (J. Shannon)
Last Life in the Universe
Palm, 104 min., in Japanese & Thai w/English subtitles, R, DVD: $24.99, Feb. 15 Volume 20, Issue 2
Last Life in the Universe
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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