Tetsuo : The Iron Man
Tetsuo is an amazing film and one of the best I’ve seen - if not the best. Right from the horrifyingly visceral opening sequence - which starts with a metal fetishist forcing an iron bar into his leg, and ends with him running into the path of an oncoming car - Tetsuo beats you around the head with imagery, ideas and sensations.
Tetsuo works on several levels. At its simplest (although nothing in this film can really be described as simple), it’s a revenge driven horror/thriller in which the metal fetishist returns to torment the driver who ran him over and whose behaviour following the accident (shown in flashbacks via a TV screen) is odd, to say the least.
On top of this, both the fetishist and the driver have become infected by metal. This infection is dehumanising for both men (a process which is underlined by not naming any of the characters in the film) not only physically, but also psychologically. However, the way they are affected is initially very different with the driver, who tries to resist the infection quickly becoming a mass of wires, solder and steel. The, clearly insane, fetishist embraces the infection - in fact it isn’t clear (to me, at least) whether he was killed in the car accident and revived by the metal or whether he survived - and, initially, appears to be not only in control of his own infection but also that of the driver.
The pacing of this film is incredible. The plot rushes forward, bombarding you with events and scenes so rapidly that you really do need to watch it twice just to get a handle on what exactly is going on. This, combined with the immense amount of stop-motion animation used throughout, gives the film a very surreal feel - probably the closest anyone is going to get to a live action anime.
The main themes of this film explore the encroachment of industrialisation on nature and the dehumanising effect of becoming over-reliant on technology. These are complex issues and well handled not spoon-feeding the audience but simply battering you with a plot in which these ideas are integral, necessary and assumed. There is no pause to explain any of this, it’s simply left to sink in after the film has finished. This approach makes Tetsuo a very thoughtful film, but only to an audience that is willing to think about it.
Tetsuo is much more than just a film. It’s an experience akin to taking a vertical rollercoaster ride straight down. It’s also and experience that shouldn’t be missed.
Friday 30 Jun 2000 | Paul Pritchard | Science Fiction
