Review: Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (2014)

[David N. Butterworth]

KUMIKO, THE TREASURE HUNTER (2014)
A film review by David N. Butterworth
Copyright 2016 David N. Butterworth

*** (out of ****)

The discovery, in a cave along the Japanese shoreline, of a beat-up VHS
copy of "Fargo" with its "Based on a True Story" promise of buried
treasure, propels Tokyo-based "Office Lady" Kumiko (Rinko Kikuchi,
Oscar-nominee for 2006's "Babel") on a whirlwind search for a briefcase
full of cash--the one buried in the snow by Steve Buscemi's character--in
the frigid wilds of Minnesota. "Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter" is a cold,
sometimes comic movie. You feel that cold in your bones as the unmarried
29-year-old, separated from her beloved bunrab Bunzo and funding this
fool's errand with a purloined company credit card, bundles along the
chilly north-south corridors, the wind whipping at her hooded hair. Wising
up, she rips open a colorful motel quilt and wears it as a *sarape*. She
accepts the kindness of strangers often but fleetingly, typically bolting
before first light. "Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter" feels more like a Polish
Brothers movie ("Northfork," "Twin Falls Idaho") than one conceived by
"Fargo"'s Coen sibs. In actual fact, it's "A Zellner Bros." film--David
directs and also co-writes with his brother Nathan; both have small roles
in the film. "Kumiko'" is their fifth collaboration, a film of bounteous,
crystalline contrasts and atonal rhythms (by the indietronica band The
Octopus Project), an ambitious arthouse odyssey with an ambiguous ending.
And, of course, the wonderful, wistful Kikuchi at its core: focused,
laconic, and wholly unfit for this world. We can only hope she finds that
better world she believes exists beyond North Dakota's stark wire fences.

--
David N. Butterworth
rec.arts.movies.reviews
butterwo...@gmail.com