Funky Forest: The First Contact

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Funky Forest: The First Contact

2005

1h 45m

Comedy

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Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

40%

Tomatometer

10 Reviews

78%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

An outrageous collection of surreal stories largely revolving around Guitar Brother, his randy older sibling, and their portly Caucasian brother.

Anton Bitel

Little White Lies

those creatures, in all their grotesque hybridity, embody the monstrous form of the film itself, combining within its ungainly duration not just weird go-nowhere comedy, but also prolonged singing-and-dancing sequences and even episodes of animation

Mar 14, 2022

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Dennis Harvey

Variety

Breathtakingly, often hilariously bizarre.

Feb 23, 2012

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Stephen Garrett

Time Out

Rated: 1/5

Nov 17, 2011

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Pieter-Jan Van Haecke

Psychocinematography

Funky Forest: The First Contact is strange, mundane, surprising, deadpan funny, funky, and ethereal all rolled into one.

Dec 21, 2023

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Charles Mudede

The Stranger (Seattle, WA)

The whole film is off the register, off the rails, mind-bending.

Apr 21, 2023

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Martin Tsai

New York Sun

Imagine a two-and-a-half-hour episode of “Saturday Night Live” or “MADtv,” directed by Michel Gondry. No, make that Matthew Barney. No, make that David Cronenberg.

Apr 21, 2023

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Audience Member

Swatting at milk, odd instruments, and a new television.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

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Audience Member

So much potential wasted due to lack of even a microfibre thread connecting it all.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

01/16/23

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lariste l

Hilarious sketch comedy on work life, dating, film and many satirical riffs on the Japanese school system. Great film, lengthy in a few scenes but still a very talented and enjoyable minor release.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

Hellbent on being as weird as possible, this surreal, absurdist take on modern life is often funny. It is also uncomfortably perverse. And make no mistake, this is an epic of surreal / absurdist/ experimental comedy. Essentially a series of sketches that alternate in tone held together by a sort of variety show from Hell narrative. It is one of the strangest movies I've ever seen. Not for all tastes. But if you're like me and enjoy movies that enjoy pushing against the grain of conventional narrative, you will enjoy it. Or like me, you may even love it. Guitar Brothers Rule.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

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Audience Member

Absurdist comic surrealism. Imagine David Croenberg attempting to make comedy. Must be seen to be believed. And, it must be seen!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/29/23

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Audience Member

Sometimes horrifying, other times touching, ????? is one of few films on this planet that one can love unabashedly, yet still be nervous to show anyone. The kind of depth of character achieved by many of the film's top-bill actors is so out of left field and unexpected for this kind of film project that most people don't pick up on the thoughht put into each and every character. Honestly, Asano Tadanobu's content smile with a mouth full of Snickers is enough to convince the viewer that, yes, he loves his fellow Guitar Brothers, and yes, life is better in their company.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

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Katsuhito Ishii

Director

Hajime Ishimine

Director

Shunichiro Miki

Director

Andrew Alfieri

Actor

Hideaki Anno

Actor

Moyoco Anno

Actor

Synopsis

An outrageous collection of surreal stories largely revolving around Guitar Brother, his randy older sibling, and their portly Caucasian brother.

Director: Katsuhito Ishii, Hajime Ishimine, Shunichiro Miki
Producer: Norihisa Harada
Screenwriter: Shunichiro Miki, Hajime Ishimine, Katsuhito Ishii
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (DVD): Mar 18, 2008
Runtime: 1h 45m