Cloud (2024, Japan, Kiyoshi Kurosawa)
Cloud continues the multi-genre style associated with
Kurosawa’s films and fits nicely within Kurosawa’s body of work. The style and themes identified in this earlier Spotlight still apply to Cloud. In addition, Cloud is a worthy
extension to ideas first explored in Pulse.
Pulse (2001) was released just as the internet was
becoming commonplace. The horror in the film is transmitted to anyone whose
computer is connected to the internet via a dial-up modem. In Pulse, people
are starting to form connections only virtually and losing face-to-face social
connections. An observation from a character in the film is that everyone is
sitting lifelessly in front of their computer and she notes that it is hard to
tell if those people are already dead or still alive. In a way, Pulse
was decades ahead of its time and came out long before smart phones, laptops
and other devices allowed people to be constantly connected on the internet.
The loneliness and erosion of community that Pulse raises has
increased substantially over the last two decades and truly accelerated since
2020.
Cloud picks up from Pulse and continues exploration of the internet in
our contemporary times when people order anything and everything over the
internet. Rare items, every day items, illegal items, legal items, all are
snapped up online especially if people can save a few dollars. Cloud
looks at an internet reseller Yoshii (Masaki Suda) who earns a living by buying items on the cheap and selling them for a hefty profit. As the film
shows, Yoshii is savvy in sniffing out deals and often buys well below the
market price. He identifies situations where people are desperate and takes
advantage of their needs. All is fine until Yoshii moves out of Tokyo into the
countryside where his ways catch the attention of locals including the police. Meanwhile,
angry online users want revenge for faulty purchases from Yoshii and band together to teach
Yoshii a lesson.
The revenge unfolds in a manner reminiscent of Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s style albeit with a few cinematic homages (a touch of Michael Haneke to name one). Cloud is a gripping thriller that seamlessly weaves horror, dark humour, gangsters and crime with a social commentary of our contemporary world. It is easily one of the best films of 2024!