Tetsuo - The Iron Man [VHS] [1989]

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
In ITetsuo: The Iron Man/I Shinya Tsukamoto draws on the marriage of flesh and technology that inspires so much of David Cronenberg's work and then twists it into a Manga-influenced cyberpunk vision. A man (Tomoroh Taguchi) awakens from a nightmare in which his body is helplessly fusing with the metal objects around him, only to find it happening to him in real life... or is it? Haunted by memories of a hit and run (eerily prophetic of Cronenberg's ICrash/I), the man knows this ordeal could be a dream, a fantastic form of divine retribution, or perhaps technological mutation born of guilt and rage. p Shot in bracing black and white on a small budget, Tsukamoto puts a demented conceptual twist on good old-fashioned stop-motion effects and simple wire work, giving his film the surreal quality of a waking dream with a psychosexual edge (resulting in the film's most disturbing scene). The story ultimately takes on an abstract quality enhanced by the grungy look and increasingly wild images as they take to the streets in a mad chase of technological speed demons. This first entry in his self-titled "Regular Sized Monster Series" was followed by a full-colour sequel, ITetsuo II: The Body Hammer/I, which trades the muddy experimental atmosphere for a big-budget sheen but can't top the cybershock to the system this movie packs.--ISean Axmaker/I

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2008-10-07 rating:
Extreme Japanese mecha/man madness!
I saw this film when it was on TV a few years ago, loved it's absurdness and all out ridiculas style. I would describe it as a B movie with an art house feel... Very strange. When I've sold enough cattle at the market I will by this DVD. :-)

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review by: even'your'best'friends'need'a'grope date: 2008-01-08 rating:
stylised nightmare
watch it with an open mind and you will love this film. br /and you ll probably love: br /eraser head br /holy mountain br /Un chien andalou

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review by: date: 2008-01-07 rating:
Tsukamoto's vivid, visceral cyber-punk cult-classic. Still the ultimate trip.
Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1988) was the first acknowledged film from Japanese auteur Shinya Tsukamoto following years of short-form, amateur experimentation, on a combination of home video and Super 8. Like his two preceding short films, A Phantom of Regular Size (1986) and The Adventures of Electric Rod Boy (1987), Tetsuo: The Iron Man is a striking piece of hyper-kinetic visual filmmaking; documenting the tortuous decent into hell for a Japanese businessman, who, after a serious accident, finds that his body has inexplicably begun mutating into a mass of metal, wire and steal. br / br /Tsukamoto's principal preoccupations as a filmmaker are often focused on the themes of alienation, claustrophobia, technology (all tied to the depiction of Tokyo as a punishing maze of dehumanising dread), and most importantly, the human body. Throughout his work, Tsukamoto has looked at the self-inflicted destruction of the body, via films such as Tetsuo: The Iron Man, and its bigger-budgeted follow up Tetsuo II: Body Hammer (1992), as well as his ultra-violent boxing film Tokyo Fist (1995); through to the more traditional notions of natural decay, death and internal destruction with films like A Snake of June (2002), Bullet Ballet (1998) and Vital (2004). All of these characteristics are presented here, with the film showing us how easily tragedy can strike (and indeed, go un-noticed) in a built up metropolitan city, and how striving to become the ultimate human being can often involve a melding of man with machine (the natural with the synthetic). br / br /The great thing about Tsukamoto's work is that it can often be enjoyed on a number of levels; so, with Tetsuo: The Iron Man, we have something that could be viewed as an abstract science-fiction film with elements of cyber-punk derived body horror; or instead, we could look at some of the deeper, more metaphorical interpretations pertaining to the ideas of guilt, fear, murder, death, sex, lust, paranoia and perhaps even notions more unsavoury than that! The accident that is hinted at throughout the film is vague and offers only the slightest hint as to what Tetsuo is really about; giving us one potential interpretation in a film that seems absolute bursting with wild ideas and vivid flights of fantasy. All we have to really hold onto is the broad notion of a character spiralling into a pit of despair; consumed by guilt and losing his mind and the trust of his wife/girlfriend in light of this tragic chain of events! Now, I'm not pretending I know all the answers here, but I do like to theorise. Someone else might view the film and take from it an entirely different interpretation, but could still find it entirely enjoyable and entertaining regardless. The fact remains that despite the layers of personal interpretation the one thing that will always stand out - regardless of whether or not you even liked the film in the first place - is the unbridled imagination and visual flair that Tsukamoto brings to the project as it's writer, director, editor, art director, cinematographer, designer, special effects technician and supporting actor. br / br /I suppose the best way to describe Tetsuo: The Iron Man is like a hyper-kinetic mishmash of Lynch's meta-film masterpiece Eraserhead (1976) and Cronenberg's dark melodrama Videodrome (1982), with an obvious stylistic debt owed to the works of Japanese "punk filmmaker" Sogo Ishii; who covered similar territory with his industrial-influenced, highly visual early films such as Panic High School (1978), Crazy Thunder Road (1980) and Burst City (1982). All of this, combined with Tsukamoto's background in performance art, illustration and fondness for traditional Japanese monster movies enthuses Tetsuo with a freewheeling disregard for narrative, character and logic; as our hero (played here by cult actor and musician Tomorowo Taguchi, who should be familiar to fans of Tsukamoto's work, and that of his contemporary Takashi Miike) sprouts wires from his finger tips and a pneumatic drill where there was no drill before! Some viewers have also likened the film to a live action anime, with Tetsuo having certain similarities with Katsuhiro Ôtomo's Akira (1982-1986); in which another character named Tetsuo undergoes a painful transformation from a fresh faced teen, into a horribly deformed cyber-punk killing machine. br / br /Like many films of this nature, Tetsuo: The Iron Man won't be to all tastes, and will probably be better appreciated by viewers who approach it, not as a conventional film, but as a wild, audio/visual trip. Let the images wash over you while you pick apart the sociological subtext at your own leisure; all the while marvelling at the amazing achievement that Tsukamoto managed to pull off with an incredibly limited budget and an unbelievably small crew. For me, Tetsuo is perhaps not quite as rewarding as some of Tsukamoto's other works, chiefly Tokyo Fist, Gemini (1999) and A Snake of June, but regardless, remains a fascinating and unforgettable summation of his early style and various cinematic preoccupations, whilst simultaneously offering a unique viewing experience for those of you who are genuinely interested in through-provoking, visually arresting, art-house shock cinema.

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review by: aph84 date: 2007-05-18 rating:
Exciting low budget weirdness
Tetsuo is around one hour long, in black and white, in Japanese (hardly any dialogue though) and made on a very small budget. It tells a bizarre story about a metal fetishist who inserts a metal rod into his leg only to find maggots in there too. He runs into the street, but is knocked down by a businessman. As a result, the businessman starts to change into something strange. It starts with a little bit of metal poking out of face, but soon gets worse. br / br /The Evil Dead, Gozdzilla, Cronenberg, art films, all get stirred in, and the fast pace of the film is thrilling as it rushes you along. If this was a song, it'd be something post-punk or industrial, it's not for mainstream fans, but it's not boring art either. br / br /Personally, I rate it up there with Lynch's Eraserhead, or Aronovsky's Pi, both black and white debut films that mix genre with out and out oddness. If you are open minded enough to like those, check this out. If you prefer American blockbusters - well, bye!!


review by: date: 2005-04-16 rating:
Don't Bother
I've seen some rubbish in my time but this is way up there at the top of the pile. Don't even waste your money renting it!pAt one point in the film the main character asks "what is happening to me" and then "I don't understand what is going on" (both paraphrased) - he's not the only one! I could see no point to this film whatsoever.pI think the only reason that it has got a high rating by other reviewer's is because it is one of those types of movie that 'film buff's' just love to praise - especially when it is Japanese or Korean etc.pAvoid it - you'll thank me that you did :-)

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