The Kamagasaki Cauldron War

This 16mm-film shot with vivid colours and contrasts is set in Kamagasaki, a neighbourhood in Osaka where workers with insecure jobs live. The setting gives the film an almost-documentary strength but the narrative elements are completely extraordinary and are developed around dazzling theft scenes committed by different inhabitants in different locations. They are all looking for an improbably precious object, the kama pot, a kind of cauldron that is the symbol of the local Yakuza clan and of the neighbourhood. This fiction, filmed with the real Kamagasaki inhabitants, is a constant cinematographic surprise thanks to its profuse shots and unexpected sequences, such as the stroll amongst the floating logs coming from the nearby factories. But what is most admirable about this film is the infinite tenderness the characters feel for each other - their indestructible treasure. (Charlotte Corchète)