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6/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Hanayome no negoto remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
You should absolutely watch this today if you have 55 minutes to spare and love cozy, low-stakes comedies. But, if you cannot stand old, hiss-heavy audio or movies where grown men act like hyperactive toddlers, you will probably hate it. 😴
The setup is so simple it feels like a sitcom episode. Only one guy in a group of college friends actually manages to graduate, get a job, and marry a gorgeous wife (played by the wonderful Kinuyo Tanaka).
His jealous, deadbeat friends—who are still stuck in school—decide the best way to celebrate is to crash his new home. Specifically, they want to test a rumor that his new bride talks in her sleep.
It has that same chaotic, youthful energy you might find in early Hollywood campus comedies like Young April. But here, everything is squeezed into a tiny Japanese house with paper walls. 🏠
Most of the movie is just these guys being loud, drinking sake, and refusing to leave. They play these silly games, and you can practically feel the poor husband's blood pressure rising through the screen.
The physical comedy is super fast. At one point, a guy trips over a tatami mat and the camera just sort of wobbles for a second like the cameraman was laughing too.
Kinuyo Tanaka is the absolute highlight here. She plays the bride with this amazing mix of sweetness and total irritation, especially when she tries to pretend she is asleep while five dudes stare at her face.
It is not a masterpiece, and some of the jokes are definitely a bit dusty. Sometimes a scene just ends abruptly because they probably ran out of film or something. 🤷
Still, there is something so warm about it. It feels like looking at a moving photo album of people who were having a blast making a silly movie ninety years ago.