Destruction Babies

Channeling an unbridled angst similar to that of Tsai Ming-liang’s breakthrough debut Rebels of the Neon God, this visceral cinematic diatribe treads the terrorist paths of Larry Peerce’s The Incident and Penelope Spheeris’s The Boys Next Door. Taira lives on the outskirts of a small Japanese seaport town. Consumed by an overwhelming ennui that morphs into a fervent and unfocused rage, he heads downtown and starts picking fights with every tough-looking guy he finds, leaving in his wake an apocalyptic streak of violent mayhem. No explanations are given for the deadpan displays of violence, yet there is definitely something deeper brewing under the surface. With a tone that rings both authentic and fantastically absurd, the film plays as an indictment of societal ills and its byproduct: the irreversibly damaged human psyche. It’s arresting and well crafted, imbued with a refreshingly raw aesthetic. New York Premiere.