Some spoilers follow: I haven't actually watched any other Oshima movies, although I certainly intend to after seeing this. The plot can be hard to follow at times, as the characters are almost all selfish, greedy, and naive. Even Takeshi, the innocent pseudo hero can't save himself from the self-centered, violent lifestyle he is surrounded by. As downright despicable as nearly all of the characters are, one has to admire Hanako's ability to survive, and also be the cleanest person in the movie. How she keeps that dress so clean is beyond me, but perhaps it is a metaphor for her unique ability to see a way past the slum. Even the doctor that Shin corrupts shows the gradual decay all the slummers have in common. As they lose hope, and fail to see the light at the end of the tunnel, their clothes are stained, darkened, ripped, and worn. As a commentary on depravity, this movie is excellent, as an examination of deceit and betrayal, a classic. The film's title, Grave of the Sun, can be construed as an allusion to the fall of the Japanese empire, and indeed the characters who believe they can rebuild the empire by exploiting the Japanese, and selling their identities to foreigners indeed suffer the most. (But even so, just about everyone in this movie suffers pretty badly.) Note that it takes place in the slums of Osaka, where they speak a colorful, unique Japanese dialect. One girl in my Japanese Film class said 'they might as well be speaking Chinese.' Not quite, but it would be hard to follow without subtitles.
Review of The Sun's Burial
