Bottom Line: A Japanese family tries to make ends meet by turning their home into a B&B. Unfortunately, the few guests who do arrive manage to die during their stay.

Story Line: The highway opening couldn’t have happened at a more opportune time for the financially challenged Katakuri family. Deciding that access to a busy street will guarantee a steady flow of customers, they hang out a sign declaring their home open to guests. What they didn’t expect is the high mortality rate of the few people who do stay with them, including a sumo wrestler who has a heart attack mid-intercourse, suffocating his girlfriend in the process. The family’s discovery of her body—literally smashed into the mattress ¾ is indeed bizarre. Desperate to have their business venture succeed, they avoid the police and bury each corpse in their backyard. Amidst all of this chaos, the dysfunction of the Katakuri family is exposed. Incredibly the action of the story is periodically interjected with musical numbers, sung and danced by the family.

Tell Me More: Japanese director Takash Miike has won recognition for his unique filmmaking style, which shocks with scenes of violence and gore. A prolific artist who, at 42, has made over 62 films, Miike has risen from an underground favorite of the cult crowd to a filmmaker whose work has garnered awards at numerous international film festivals. Happiness of the Katakuris is a jarring, unusual addition to this busy director’s filmography.

Happiness of the Katakuris is not for everyone. Its disparate components—death, musical numbers and claymation—may be too disconcerting for some viewers. The clunky musical numbers, which seem to pop up out of nowhere, are amateurish and poorly choreographed, reminiscent of Clint Eastwood’s painful warbling in Paint Your Wagon. Despite this ineptness, these oddball moments are mesmerizing because of their bizarre juxtaposition.

The striking claymation sequences by Misako Saku are mind-bending. The opening shots grab the audience instantly and jolt them with abrupt violence. Simply put, a little girl’s heart is yanked out by a monster while she’s eating some soup. This black humor pervades the film in a weird nod to the likes of Hitchcock in his Family Plot mode.

Happiness of the Katakuris is a valiant attempt to go outside the cinematic box. Its tempo, however, suffers from combining these oil-and-water elements, leaving the audience in a continual state of emotional confusion. Of course, that makes this film a perfect choice for post-film discussion.

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