Title: Happiness of the Katakuris
Starring: Kenji Sawada, Keiko Matsuzaka, Shinji Takeda, Naomi Nishida

Director: Takashi Miike
Studio: Fortex Group Ltd.
Rating: 18 Up
Genre: Comedy


Synopsis:

Notorious though he may be, Japanese filmmaker Takashi Miike is not just some sick bastard -- he's a sick bastard with heart. Compared to his ultraviolent Dead or Alive (another recent Miike movie to premiere at the Royal), his torture extravaganza Audition or his manga-inspired bloodbath Ichi the Killer, The Happiness of the Katakuris is a movie the whole family can enjoy. It has a tender love story for the grown-ups, some scares for the teens, a few shoddy and inexplicable claymation sequences for the kiddies and a wealth of fabulous musical numbers -- it's like spending a rousing evening at Sing-a-Long Sound of Music before committing a killing spree.

Though Western audiences are unlikely to notice, Miike's movie shares its premise with a recent Korean black comedy, The Quiet Family. A plucky family named the Katakuris opens a guest house and is disappointed at the lack of visitors. When guests finally arrive, most meet violent ends before getting the chance to eat their complimentary breakfasts. Terrified that the discovery of the deaths will spell ruin for the business, father Masao (Kenji Sawada) convinces the rest of the family to help him bury the bodies. Meanwhile, daughter Shizue (Naomi Nishida) is romanced by a naval officer who claims to be a British secret agent and the nephew of Queen Elizabeth II. ("Diana!" he laments to Shizue. "If only I was there! Damn the paparazzi!")

While the storyline meanders badly and the violence is depicted with uncharacteristic modesty, the musical sequences are terrific. The songs parody a wide variety of styles, from romantic ballads to full-blown Rodgers and Hammerstein production numbers to flashy karaoke videos complete with onscreen lyrics. Anyone with a weakness for song-and-dance dementia on the level of Forbidden Zone and Cannibal! The Musical will find all this irresistible. The Happiness of the Katakuris will put a song in your heart, then stick a knife in your chest.

The Katakuri clan, innkeepers who live on the depopulated slopes of Mount Fuji, band together with tuneful Von Trapp-like determination when their guests keep turning up dead. The most rousing numbers arrive early: Upon discovery of the first body, reaction shots are given the full music-video treatment, replete with dry ice and blue light. In a trippy, literally levitating romantic duet, the daughter is wooed by an alleged U.S. Navy pilot, who later claims to be from the British royal family and speaks warmly of "Aunt Elizabeth."

IMO:
this is the remake of the quiet family if i am not wrong... maybe its the other way round cos this one seems more original... a funny clay opening intro followed by the unexpected deaths... the big difference between the 2 movies is happiness actually has a lot of singalongs... like musical like that loh...

Rating:
3 out of 5 snoopys (sorry but i tink a quiet family is really beter)