Cold Fish
Encyclopedia
is a 2010 Japanese serial killer film directed by Sion Sono
. The film is about a quiet and unambitious owner of a tropical fish shop who's life and family are taken over by a fellow fish entrepreneur who happens to be a serial killer. The film is loosely based on the exploits of two Tokyo serial killers, Sekine Gen and Hiroko Kazama, a husband and wife duo who owned a pet shop and murdered at least four people.
Cold Fish premiered at the 67th Venice International Film Festival
on September 7, 2010 and received the best screenplay award in the Fantastic Features section at Fantastic Fest
2010.
, Cold Fish is the third film to be released by Nikkatsu
's Sushi Typhoon
, their gore-themed series.
Director and writer Sion Sono
was influenced by Japanese crime cases while developing Cold Fish, specifically about an actual killing spree committed by a dog kennel owner in the 1980s involving a family of three that becomes entangled in a string of ongoing murders perpetrated by a tropical fish salesman in Shizuoka Prefecture
. Sono also wanted to to "depict a sense of total hopelessness" which he felt is "lacking in Japanese films."
on September 7, 2010. It was also shown at film festivals in Pusan and at the Toronto International Film Festival
where it received it's North American premiere. Cold Fish won the best screenplay award in the Fantastic Features section at Fantastic Fest
2010. It was released in Japan on January 29, 2011.
In the United Kingdom, Total Film
gave the film a three out of five rating, suggesting that plot twists and black comedy offered welcome reprieve from the "largely hysterical acting and rivers of viscera."
The Guardian
found the film to be "fairly ordinary" in comparison to Sono's other works and felt that the film was too long. Radio Times
gave the film three out of five stars praising the acting from Denden, Fukikoshi and Kurosawa and Shinya Kimura's photography and Takashi Matsuzuka's production design which made up for "some overindulgent directorial moments".
Sion Sono
is a controversial Japanese filmmaker and poet. He was born in Toyokawa, Aichi, Japan, and is best known for his films as well as avant-garde poetry performances.-Early career:...
. The film is about a quiet and unambitious owner of a tropical fish shop who's life and family are taken over by a fellow fish entrepreneur who happens to be a serial killer. The film is loosely based on the exploits of two Tokyo serial killers, Sekine Gen and Hiroko Kazama, a husband and wife duo who owned a pet shop and murdered at least four people.
Cold Fish premiered at the 67th Venice International Film Festival
67th Venice International Film Festival
The 67th annual Venice Film Festival held in Venice, Italy, took place from September 1 to September 11, 2010. American film director and screenwriter Quentin Tarantino was head of the Jury. John Woo was awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement prior to the start of the Festival...
on September 7, 2010 and received the best screenplay award in the Fantastic Features section at Fantastic Fest
Fantastic Fest
Fantastic Fest is an annual film festival in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 2005 by Tim League of Alamo Drafthouse, Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News, Paul Alvarado-Dykstra, and Tim McCanlies, writer of The Iron Giant and Secondhand Lions. The festival focuses on genre films such as horror,...
2010.
Production
Following Alien vs Ninja and Mutant Girls SquadMutant Girls Squad
is a Japanese film by Noboru Iguchi, Yoshihiro Nishimura and Tak Sakaguchi. The film is about Rin, a sixteen-year-old mutant girl who meets a gang of rebel mutants who aim to take revenge on humans for persecuting their race...
, Cold Fish is the third film to be released by Nikkatsu
Nikkatsu
is a Japanese entertainment company well known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio. The name Nikkatsu is an abbreviation of Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Cinematograph Company".-History:...
's Sushi Typhoon
Sushi Typhoon
Sushi Typhoon is a Japanese genre film production company founded in 2010 and currently owned by media conglomerate Nikkatsu Corporation, Japan's oldest existing film studio. -History:...
, their gore-themed series.
Director and writer Sion Sono
Sion Sono
is a controversial Japanese filmmaker and poet. He was born in Toyokawa, Aichi, Japan, and is best known for his films as well as avant-garde poetry performances.-Early career:...
was influenced by Japanese crime cases while developing Cold Fish, specifically about an actual killing spree committed by a dog kennel owner in the 1980s involving a family of three that becomes entangled in a string of ongoing murders perpetrated by a tropical fish salesman in Shizuoka Prefecture
Shizuoka Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Shizuoka.- History :Shizuoka prefecture was formed from the former Tōtōmi, Suruga and Izu provinces.The area was the home of the first Tokugawa Shogun...
. Sono also wanted to to "depict a sense of total hopelessness" which he felt is "lacking in Japanese films."
Release
Cold Fish premiered at the 67th Venice International Film Festival67th Venice International Film Festival
The 67th annual Venice Film Festival held in Venice, Italy, took place from September 1 to September 11, 2010. American film director and screenwriter Quentin Tarantino was head of the Jury. John Woo was awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement prior to the start of the Festival...
on September 7, 2010. It was also shown at film festivals in Pusan and at the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
where it received it's North American premiere. Cold Fish won the best screenplay award in the Fantastic Features section at Fantastic Fest
Fantastic Fest
Fantastic Fest is an annual film festival in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 2005 by Tim League of Alamo Drafthouse, Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News, Paul Alvarado-Dykstra, and Tim McCanlies, writer of The Iron Giant and Secondhand Lions. The festival focuses on genre films such as horror,...
2010. It was released in Japan on January 29, 2011.
Reception
Film Business Asia gave Cold Fish a 8 out of 10 rating praising the actor Denden who without his "tour-de-force performance...Cold Fish may never have worked." The review went on to state that "Though there's considerable gore on display, it's largely cartoonish. Cold Fish is not so much a blood-and-guts horror movie, more a danse macabre about social breakdown."In the United Kingdom, Total Film
Total Film
Total Film is a British film magazine published 13 times a year by Future Publishing. The magazine was launched in 1997 and offers film, DVD and Blu-ray news, reviews and features...
gave the film a three out of five rating, suggesting that plot twists and black comedy offered welcome reprieve from the "largely hysterical acting and rivers of viscera."
The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
found the film to be "fairly ordinary" in comparison to Sono's other works and felt that the film was too long. Radio Times
Radio Times
Radio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...
gave the film three out of five stars praising the acting from Denden, Fukikoshi and Kurosawa and Shinya Kimura's photography and Takashi Matsuzuka's production design which made up for "some overindulgent directorial moments".