[Mouryou no Hako] - 04
Playing catch up is hard work, especially with a series like this.
Anyway, it's quite difficult to speak about this episode in isolation because it clearly feels like one piece in a much larger puzzle. I know that's true of most mystery fiction but it's particularly pertinent here. One big problem with that approach, and with this episode, is that it's a bit messy and loose, it doesn't feel like a properly contained episode with a traditional structure.
This episode is supposed to introduce us to the dismembering murderer element of the story but it's also trying to do a bunch of other stuff like fill out details of Kiba's past or telling us about Sekiguchi's publishing deals or what have you. As this is being adapted from a novel it's being adapted from a medium that doesn't tell stories in neat little anime arcs and as such the episodes to this show rarely feature neat little arcs. This is actually the reason why I think you'd be better off marathoning this show then watching it week to week: it's really easy to forget details and miss the interconnecting tissue when you leave a large gap between episodes. I's quite difficult to remember where you were and what you're supposed to be paying attention too, especially as we keep jumping between days and protagonists.
Direction and production wise, this episode has some pretty rough moments with lots of stills being employed early on as an obvious budget saving measure. Nevertheless, despite a bit of a rough start there are a variety of effective sequences. For example, the brief introduction we get to one of the
is surprisingly effective. I like how they manage to set up another mother/daughter conflict in a surprisingly short amount of time. This shot is rather aesthetically pleasing:
and this one is equally disturbing:
If we were to look at the series under a certain lens it might appear that she was 'punished' for being a prostitute, however it's later revealed that the victims aren't really connected by any obvious thread so that throws that interpretation out the window.
In addition: I really like the way visuals and music are linked during this revelation of a dismembered limb. Notice too that the first image is of entrapment, a recurring theme in this series:
I really enjoy the contrast of the ordinary and extraordinary, as well as the fact that we never actually see what the characters are reacting too. I also like how the cut of the boys looking up is mirrored by the next immediate image of the killer starting down at his prize. It's a very creepy cut because the way the images are placed next to each other almost makes it look like the boys are looking up into his eyes and he's looking down on them (and the viewer), suggesting vulnerability.
Speaking of telling scenes, when Kiba meets up with the director we return once again to the idea of entrapment:
As they discuss Kanako's sister, Minami Kinuko, the idea of her being trapped in the movie business is brought up while at the same time we see a dancer performing an extremely rigid and restrained dance - she's clearly a visual representation of this idea because she doesn't appear to solve any other role in the scene. I think it's also worth pointing out that Minami Kinuo now appears to be completely trapped in the box hospital and, in particular, trapped in a single room.
Also, a passing thought: they really like hinting that Sekiguchi has something to do with the killings:
but he's not involved...right?
