Cat's Eye (1997)

This movie here is something else entirely. Unlike Hayashi's other movies, which are very much infused with a love for the cinematic past, Cat's Eye owes more to the comic books it is based off than the cinema, and for that reason it lacks the magic of his other movies. Sure, this bursts with energy and color, but something is missing. All of the other movies by Hayashi have this very emotional, and melancholy layer to them. I wonder why he never made anything like his first two films again; I feel if he had, Hayashi might be more highly regarded than he is now. In terms of content, though, Cat's Eye is one of the more bizarre movies I have seen recently. The only film I have to compare it to is Obayashi's House, and like that movie, it is not exactly good, but it is a lot of fun. The blatant use of rear projection, animation, cheesy special effects, overly theatrical acting, costumes, just the whole ridiculous nature of it does have a certain charm. I have seen few Japanese movies where the heroes break into a fortress guarded by Arab paramilitaries. Or a baseball wielding policeman, for that matter. The plot is a jumbled mess, and the ending is really quite anticlimactic and slightly confusing. From what little research I did, the character of the missing father is very different in the comics than he is here (in the comics he is an artist who saved artwork from the Nazis and was betrayed by his brother). This one is worth watching for the leather clad superheroines if you are into that sort of thing, but otherwise it is just a bit too much.