Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Class *warfare* I felt was at the heart of this thriller from acclaimed cult director Shinya Tsukamoto regarding unstable Sutekichi(Masahiro Motoki) with a scar on his leg(..who was abandoned by his parents, found floating across a river and brought up by a theatrical troupe performer, living as a thief in the slums) who tosses his successful, respected and prominently regarded doctor twin brother Yukio into his family's well, assuming his identity. Sutekichi is essentially responsible for the deaths of their parents, but his ulterior motive is re-entering the life of Rin(Ryô)who was once his lover and partner in the slums, with them separated after their thievery leads to possible trouble for the troupe when a man comes seeking revenge for what they did to his family after stealing jewels. Sutekichi has studied Yukio's mannerisms and habits, perfectly embodying him with no one, except Rin(..who has been manipulating Yukio into thinking she's an amnesia case with no history she can recall)knowing who he really is. Sutekichi visits Yukio from time to time, to drop food scraps or for to torment and ridicule him. Over time, Yukio, in a sense, switches roles with Sutekichi, understanding what it was like from his point-of-view. There's a choice Yukio makes regarding whether to treat a drunken mayor who stumbled onto a spike which plunged into his chest, or a dirty, possibly plague-infested mother whose child needs help. Choosing the mayor, symbolically siding with the higher class instead of the poor, Yukio will swallow a bitter pill when his brother takes him away from the comforts of living, placing him in a horrifying situation of confinement, hunger, and filth..there seems to be no escape as he looks up at his brother, who teases about ruining his practice and making love to his wife. And, among the pile of burdens is the knowledge that Sutekichi may've been responsible for the deaths of his parents. Tsukamoto has always brought a collection of directorial styles, his camera can sit still, smoothly glide, follow the actions of a situation feverishly..whatever is taking place in the story, Tsukamoto has a certain way of conveying it. We get a look at two worlds, the proper, quiet life of a man of prestige and wealth, and the ugly, loud and scuzzy world of the slums..quite a contrast that really benefits the story as the lives of the twin brothers come full circle and both get an understanding as to what life is like in the other's shoes. Rin is the middle woman, who left the old world through an identity switch reaping the benefits of a much more healthier world, but inside longing for the life she once had, her love for Sutekichi just as strong as ever. As always Tsukamoto brings an uneasy atmosphere and the character arcs are stunning to behold, exploring the psychological terrain of what can transform a person when placed in a difficult situation(..all the three of the principals)whether it be for the betterment or detriment of their existence.

Shinya Tsukamoto, the man behind the Tetsuo films, Snake of June and Tokyo Fist takes on Edogawa Rampo story and turns in one of the most perfect marriages of sound and image I've ever run across not to mention one of the creepiest films I've seen in a very very long time.Yukio is a famous doctor who won fame treating the war wounded. He is much in demand by the wealthy and so has little time for the poor in a nearby slum where the plague has been running rampant. Yukio is also recently married to a young woman he met by the riverside and who is suffering from amnesia.Soon a dark figure is lurking about and after Yukio's father dies under mysterious and unnatural circumstances things begin to take a turn for the worse.What can I say? This is a creepy little thriller that will haunt you and keep you feeling off balance. Every shot seems to have been perfectly designed for maximum beauty. The soundtrack is a wonderful mixture of sound and music calculated to give the sense of things being not right. The effect of the sound plus the image is a sense of dread and unease even when there is nothing out of the ordinary in the frame, few thrillers or horror films have ever been able to make you feel so off by doing so little.Adding to it all is the plot which I'm told takes the Rampo story as a jumping off point and then spins it out with new complications. Give it big points for its ability to keep you guessing as to what is going on even if you know whats going on. Having read on the film I knew what was happening and yet I still had to entertain numerous other possibilities. This movie masterfully makes you wonder about what is real and what is not.I really liked this movie great deal. I don't know if its fully on its own terms or simply that its not another Japanese or Asian horror film with a long hair female ghost lurking about, honestly I don't care because the film is just so damn good it wouldn't really matter anyway.See this movie.

I was incredibly impressed by Shinya Tsukamoto's surreal cyberpunk classic 'Tetsuo', one of the most startling, original and disturbing movies of the last twenty years, and also knocked out by 'Tokyo Fist' his hyperkinetic and violent study of macho competition. Now, once again I'm impressed, this time by 'Gemini' his beautiful and haunting story of identity confusion, and sibling rivalry. The movie is said to be based on Edogawa Rampo's short story 'The Twins', but I've read it and it has virtually nothing to do with this film. Whatever, it doesn't matter, Tsukamoto has taken one or two ideas from Rampo's (excellent) story and expanded it into more interesting and inventive territory. Masahiro Motoki is brilliant in a duel role as the uptight bourgeois doctor and his malevolent criminal twin, and Ryo is beautifully enigmatic as his (apparently) amnesiac wife who is harboring a secret or two. 'Gemini' is a brilliant piece of film making, and I highly recommend it.

After having been impressed by the Tetsuo series, Gemini was all I was hoping for and much more. The cinematography is some of the most beautiful and evocative I've seen, with wonderful use of colour, light and design. Though I'd been told this movie was not "cyberpunk" like testsuo, in a way it had a similar ethic, questioning "what makes a person a person", although in this case it's more about what makes one "good or evil". I saw it the same night as I saw another popular Japanese horror, "The Ring", which curiously also features a well, but I found Gemini much more sinister and frightening.