Love Exposure

A-

Directed by Sion Sono

I must admit that I've never been a huge fan of Fantasia darling Sion Sono, the director of the enjoyable but unspectacular "Suicide Club" and the misanthropic (in my opinion) "Strange Circus." Although Sono's talent is undeniable, I've always felt that he wasted it in pursuit of shock value or cheap thrills. His latest, however, the four hour epic "Love Exposure" is an altogether satisfying and at times brilliant cinematic experience that is as impressive as it is enjoyable.

"Love Exposure" revolves around Yu, a 17 year old boy of a widowed priest. His relationship with his father is to say the least rocky, leading Yu to join a band of hooligans with whom he finds a measure of friendship. At the same time, Yu keeps his eyes open for his soul mate who he had promised his dying mother he would find and present to her. He finally strikes gold when he meets his true love by chance after coming to her rescue (dressed in drag) and fighting off a rival gang of hoodlums. The only problem is that Yoko, his love interest, quickly becomes infatuated with Yu's female persona "Miss Scorpion." Confusion ensues.

The first thing that must be said about "Love Exposure" is that its four hour running time is not only bearable, it flies by. I never found myself looking at my watch or getting up for frequent bathroom breaks. Rather, I was enthralled by Sono's film and too busy watching the story develop to worry about how long I had been sitting in the same seat. "Love Exposure's" length, far from hampering the film, actually helps it insofar as the film's characters are so well developed at the end of its running time that it feels like they could walk of the screen. Even secondary characters such as Yu's father and Koike are given extraordinary depth that likely would have been impossible had Sion Sono's chosen to wittle down the length of the film.
Although it is wacky and irreverent and weird in the manner that all of Sion Sono's films are, "Love Exposure" is also a surprisingly poignant and intelligent study on the nature of love. At one point, Yoko attempts to rid herself of Yu by telling him that he does not know what love is, yelling the words of first Corinthians 13 at him, the irony being, of course, that Yu's love for Yoko throughout the film is, in fact, patient, kind, does not envy or boast and is not proud, but is rather a pure and determined commitment. It's interesting stuff, especially coming from Sion Sono whose character's are often involved in abusive or sexually exploitative relationships. The whole tenor male/female relationships in "Love Exposure" is in fact much different than in Sono's previous works, and his softened view (if you can call it that) appears to be stripped of some of the misanthropy and cynicism found in his previous works, something that I personally find refreshing.
"Love Exposure" is not without many glaring flaws but I nevertheless feel that almost everything that is bad about "Love Exposure" pales in comparison to what is good.