The
city is clearly a dystopian Los Angeles, as envisioned in Japanese-style anime
animation, by a team of French and Japanese filmmakers. In the not too distant
future, LA (or least the neighborhood provocatively known as “Dark Meat City
(DMC)” is plagued by gang violence and government corruption, so very little
has changed. There also might be an alien conspiracy secretly calling the shots
behind the curtain. Presumably, that part is fiction. The plot points might be
old hat, but the visuals are truly eye-popping throughout Shojiro Nishimi &
Guillaume Renard’s French-language Mutafukaz
(trailer
here),
which screens during the 2018 Seattle International Film Festival.
There
are not a lot of jobs in DMC, but Angelino still manages to get fired
regularly. He is the one with the round, shiny 8-ball-like head. Orphaned at a
young age, as a result of the tragic events seen during the prologue and
subsequent flashbacks, Angelino essentially grew up fending for himself.
However, he now has a real friend in his roommate Vinz, a lovable loser with a
flaming skull for a head. Angelino has also bonded with the swarms of cockroaches
living in their decrepit building, despite Vinz’s misgivings. Willy, the socially
inept kitten or dormouse or whatever, is not exactly their close buddy, but
they tolerate his compulsively talking presence.
One
day, Angelino notices horns and assorted demonic appendages growing out of the
shadows of some of DMC’s denizens—mostly those in positions of authority. Of
course, when they realize he can “see,” like Rowdy Roddy Piper in They Live, the conspiracy starts hunting
Angelino and his friends. Much to his surprise, the stress brings out the
ominous powers lying dormant within Angelino.
That
is all pretty standard X-Files stuff,
but there are a few things that really distinguish Mutafukaz. First of all, the animation, particularly the
wonderfully baroque and eccentric looking world of DMC. Nishimi served as
character designer and animation director on Tekkonkinkreet, so the two films’ pronounced stylistic kinship
certainly makes sense. Renard’s screenplay also has a defiantly anarchic sense
of humor, which often pokes self-referential fun at itself. Yet, perhaps the most
appealing aspect of the film is the simple and honest friendship shared by
Angelino and Vinz. There was no great drama that brought them together, but when
trouble comes their way, they stick together.
Mutafukaz started as a short
film, evolved into a graphic novel series, before coming full circle as a
feature, so there is mostly likely plenty of ready mythology to accommodate future
films. It looks great, but it would be even better without all the familiar Men
in Black business, simply focusing on Angelino, Vinz, and Willy as they try to survive
the lunatic world around them. Recommended for its heart and style (but not its
narrative), Mutafukaz screens Tuesday
(5/29) and Thursday (5/31), as part of this year’s SIFF.
