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Symbol

2009 1h 33m Comedy Fantasy List
Tomatometer 2 Reviews 75% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
A man awakes in a glaringly white room and sets off a chain of events by touching part of a wall.

Critics Reviews

View All (2) Critics Reviews
Grant Watson Fiction Machine This is a very weird and deliberately silly film, that by its end actually feels oddly profound. Rated: 8/10 Nov 9, 2020 Full Review Ard Vijn ScreenAnarchy The combination of highbrow concept and lowbrow humor is unique and odd, and many directors would stumble with it, but Matsumoto has created solid gold here. Jan 15, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (79) audience reviews
Peter N Who does the director thinks he is wasting people's time like this? THE MOVIE IS TERRIBLE. It's not even funny. It tries so hard to be but they can't even get a chuckle out of a 7 year old. Too much screaming and cheesy edits. Just don't watch it. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 08/31/23 Full Review Ozman H "I wanted to write a review of the Japanese film Symbol. Honestly, I was excited to see the film, but I was shocked by the execution and the choice of the actor. The idea is terrible, but the execution was terrible. The place is full of buttons that release something when you press them. If I were in such a situation, the first thing I would do is press all the buttons to see what is hidden from me. I would also mark the important buttons for me with tape or with the soy sauce that was with the actor. The actor's performance is very stupid. His surprise is exaggerated and his movements are unnatural. You found the door and you found out that it needs a key and the key appeared to you. Why are you surprised? You should run for it quickly. The process of putting the weight on the button that opens the door took more than 6 minutes to execute, and it is an idea that should be clear. The appearance of a man running towards him did not surprise him at all and he did not stop him. His fear of the dog is exaggerated and it appeared to him more than three times. There are too many things that I cannot write here, in addition to pedophilia in touching the genitals of children. The film would have been executed in a better way if it had been in Spain." Rated 1 out of 5 stars 08/21/23 Full Review Porkuso It is a film about what comedy is about, by one of Japan's most famous comedians. For human beings, the emotion that makes us laugh is like a button that we don't know where it leads. Pursuing what makes us laugh leads to a life is not funny at all. The man becomes as if he is searching for a miracle of God. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/10/23 Full Review Audience Member To call this movie strange would be an understatement. Is there some sort of deeper meaning that I missed? Pshhhtt probably! On surface value its a strange and silly movie I feel anyone can enjoy if they give it a chance. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member One of the weirder flicks I have peeped lately. A guy is in a white room with buttons that look like small male genetalias or something. he pushes them and things come out of the walls. He hates it there and tries to escape - somthing that is possible if he pushes the right buttons and use the stuff that fall into his little room. That's the plot basically, and it's really funny at times. The idea is brilliant and it looks cool. At times this film is pretty darn perfect for me but sadly there are some things here that I don't like.The double story is not that great and it get's a bit repitative. The last 15 minutes or so are a bit tiering and auto-pilotish. I get the God-theme, it's OK and it works all right. I found the film at it's best when our dude is pushing buttons in his kick ass pyjamas, trying to figure stuff out. It's plenty of it but the rest is not as cool. In total it's a weird and funny film with a crazy plot - with a few downers. 7.5 out of 10 white rooms. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Creative beyond belief, funny and interesting till the very end. This movie was a crazy ride, and I don't think there is anything like it. The effects were awful, but it wasn't a big problem. I also didn't like the usage of popular stock sounds. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Symbol

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis A man awakes in a glaringly white room and sets off a chain of events by touching part of a wall.
Director
Hitoshi Matsumoto
Producer
Akihiko Okamoto
Screenwriter
Hitoshi Matsumoto, Mitsuyoshi Takasu
Production Co
Phantom Films
Genre
Comedy, Fantasy
Original Language
Japanese
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 23, 2018
Runtime
1h 33m