Audition (1999)

This movie, at just under two hours, is a long crawl from inception to climax.

Miike is brilliant at transforming the mundane and familiar ... into something sinister and eerie.

A diabolically adroit piece of filmmaking that goes even further than the films of Italy's excruciatingly macabre Dario Argento.

This brazen shocker is never less than compelling -- even when you feel compelled to shut your eyes.

There will be many people who consider Audition an atrocity, and a few who find it a stimulating cinema experience.

The shock imperative takes on a life of its own and floats away from the lengthy setup.

With escalating unease and a switch and bait that Hitchcock would be proud of, Audition culminates in its infamously disturbing dénouement.

If you can stomach it, this profoundly moving film will leave you dazed.

A stomach-turning masterpiece.

Whether reading Audition as a portrait of coming to terms with grief, a feminist revenge tale, or a graphic exploration of romantic attachment and idealism, it remains a terrifying film.

An extremely disturbing and violent psychological thriller from the gifted Japanese director Takashi Miike, which will linger in memory long after you see the film.

It's Japanese provocateur Takashi Miike's best film - a mordant spin on "Little Red Riding Hood" with sexist expectations as the wolf on which the tables are turned. Its "kiri, kiri" refrain also is the Zeroes' answer to "Is it safe?" from "Marathon Man."