REVIEW: HOUSE (HAUSU)

Japanese schoolgirl Oshare writes to her aunt to see if she can come for a visit with her six friends. The affirmative reply is delivered by a lovely fluffy cat named "Snowflake" who follows Oshare everywhere she goes.

Oshare's friends include Mac (the greedy one), Kung Fu (the sporty one), Melody (the musical one) and Gari the clever one (she wears glasses and everything). In this first portion of the film, there is a lot of skipping and sunshine and laughing and happy music and everyone giggling at things that aren't that particularly funny. "Oh Mac! You are always so hungry!" "Ha ha ha ha ha ha!".

It is like the film-makers overdosed on sugar. I half-expected to see whistling mice and smiling sunbeams. It's a lot of happy to take. But I pressed on.

Things go a bit mad at Auntie's House. One of the girls disappears and Auntie is seen eating "something" in her room. Another girl is attacked by mattresses and transformed into a doll. Yet another cracks like a mirror then bursts into animated flames. The piano turns carnivorous and light-fixtures cannot be trusted. Meanwhile, Snowflake stalks the halls...

"Hausu" is a seriously effed-up horror film. Although, "horror" isn't quite the right place to hole this pigeon. It's a dark, surreal, frenetic, symbolic fantasy. It's like "A Nightmare on Elm Street" as directed by Terry Gilliam or what would have happened if David Lynch worked at "Looney Tunes". I should warn all those who wish to try it that it makes very little sense, but I watched al the way through anyway. It contains some striking images and once the madness starts it certainly isn't dull.

Made in 1977, it mixes childish animation with live-action in a distinctly bonkers and non-naturalistic way, that somehow adds to the fever-dream feel of the whole thing. Also a bear cooks noodles and a man is turned into a stack of bananas. I suspect I didn't understand a lot of this. Maybe you have to be Japanese. And on drugs.

If you are of a Freudian bent, you can have field day with the symbolism. I don't know how to put this delicately. The house is basically a metaphor for a massive fanny. Told you I didn't know how to put it delicately. I think it's about puberty or the death of innocence or evil light-fixtures or something.

Impossible to rate. If you're interested enough to still be reading, you'll probably enjoy it.