Shinji Hamasaki started his career in commercials, directing a number of award-winning ones. In 2014, he directed his first short, “Time Slip Horibe Yasubei” while his feature debut came in 2020, with “Not Quite Dead Yet“. Now he returns to filmmaking with a new short, “Seen“, based on Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s short story “The Nose.”
Seen is screening at Short Shorts Film Festival and Asia
In black and white and with music that points towards a horror film, the movie begins showing a man putting on his apron, followed by the image of a woman, drawing manga in exhaustion, while the mirror in her desk that shows her face reveals that she is wearing an eye-patch on her left eye. The initial man works at a convenience store, but his huge nose draws the attention and ire of everyone that comes to the shop. As he reads comments on the web about his presence in the store, his frustration grows, but then the girl with the eye patch arrives, under some feisty pop/rock music heard from her earphones. It turns that the man is also listening to the same track, with the girl immediately pointing out the fact. A connection is established, and after the man turns the lights to a disco setting, the two start dancing.
A middle aged salaryman who is quite drunk, and a young man who is with him, enter the shop eventually though. It seems like the first one has recorded the dance, and has published the video on the web, which Tatsuya, the convenience story guy sees the next day. At the same time, though, he finds a comment that points at an Indian recipe for people with the exact same affliction as him, which he proceeds in implementing immediately. In order to do so though, he asks the help of his new friend, Fumi.
Shinji Hamasaki directs a delightful, even if somewhat dark short, in which he manages to communicate a number of very realistic and pointed comments, in the 24 minutes the movie lasts. The way appearance affects the life of people is obviously the most central one, in a remark that shows the shallowness of the majority of people, who can barely see beyond appearances. The various way bullying works, which actually extends to the life stories of both protagonists, is also commented upon, with the role social media play in the whole concept being highlighted in the most pointed way possible, as much as the lack of privacy SNS and smartphones have brought. That people find themselves going to extreme measures to change their appearance is also depicted, although through a metaphor, as much as the futility of such deeds. Lastly, the depiction of Fumi’s exhaustion while drawing manga and the fact that she is awake in the dead of the night, which is how she meets Tatsuya, conclude the rather rich context here through a subtle remark on how the particular industry works.
At the same time, and beyond all the aforementioned, “Seen” is a love story between two misfits, with the surprising way the two meet and connect, as much as the courage they both show, Tatsuya in asking for Fumi’s help and her in agreeing, being as delightful as it is brutally romantic. Furthermore, the way the movie unfolds and the ending, which finally brings some color in the story, both literally and metaphorically, result in a rather appealing story, that retains interest and the entertainment it offers from beginning to end. The ending could be described as somewhat melodramatic and cheesy, but actually fits the narrative here nicely.
The way music works throughout the short is another of the great traits here, while the black and white cinematography and the jarring editing, along with the excellent use of sound, communicate a sense of tension that permeates the narrative, creating a very appealing atmosphere throughout the short. The animation includes is also well drawn and animated.
Eita Nagayama as Tatsuya and Rina Kawaei as Fumi are quite convincing in their parts, communicating both their constant angst about how their lives turned out to be without it being their fault, as much as the way their relationship changed them, in the best fashion. Their chemistry is also excellent, with the dancing scene, the violent one, and the finale highlighting the fact in the best fashion.
“Seen” is an appealing and thought-provoking short film that maintains interest and offers entertainment from start to finish.
