TADFF: Kumiko Review

Every once in a while a movie comes along that validates my ideals; Kumiko: The Treasure Hunter is one of those movies. It is a tribute to humanity’s need to dream and believe while paying homage to the medium of film. The movie is written by David and Nathan Zellner and directed by David Zellner, it clearly shows their love of imagination. In Kumiko, Rinko Kikuchi plays the title character; a jaded woman who finds an old videotape of the Cohen Brother’s classic Fargo and mistakes it for historical documentation. She becomes fixated on the treasure, the fortune buried by Steve Buschemi’s character in the movie, and she travels to Minnesota to find it.

The film is about adventure and perseverance. The film closely studies Kumiko as a character. The first act is entirely devoted to examining her life in Japan. She is an outcast, disillusioned and unwilling to conform to societal norms. As the camera follows her through her life, we see that she does not get along with her coworkers and her boss questions her lifestyle. At 29, the expectation is that she be married and start a family, not working as an office lady. Her lifestyle also places her as an outsider. She spends her free time in her nightgown examining her video of Fargo; the only company she keeps is her bunny Bunzo. Her appearance is wild; she has untamed hair and lurks through the underground in layers of black with an oversized red hoodie. She is a sharp contrast to the sea of crisp beige suits around her. While Kumiko is immediately portrayed as an oddity, her passion and determination make her immediately compelling.

She makes her journey to the United States armed only with a map of the state and the hand embroidered map of the barb wire fence where she believes the treasure is buried. She is ill-equipped for the harsh winter in Minnesota, her hoodie does not provide nearly enough warmth and it takes very little time for her former employer to catch on to her and cancel the company credit card she has stolen. The film moves from Tokyo’s cityscapes and clean lines to the sweeping snow-scapes of Minnesota. Kumiko’s red hoodie places her as an outsider here as well as she is the bright red spot in a sea of stark white. The imagery is very strong and is used effectively to help the viewer share Kumiko’s experience. Every interior is warm and provides desperately needed relief from the cold. While she meets kind people who try to help her despite cultural and language barriers, her belief that the treasure is waiting makes her naïve and she moves forwards alone despite insurmountable odds. The decisions she makes, her desperation and determination, give her a child-like innocence. She believes in this treasure so strongly that she will not be deterred and while reality places every conceivable obstacle in her way, she forges on despite the insurmountable odds against her.

Kumiko’s story is really one of the determination of the human spirit. Her rejection of societal norms and need to forge her own path shows the filmmakers belief in imagination. Kumiko is sympathetic and an unlikely hero. While her story is not always a happy one, and she suffers for her belief, her determination is her driving force and you can’t help but root for her despite the unconquerable obstacles in her way. The film shows a clear love of the history and films that came before it and places value on imagination and storytelling. The unique score by The Octopus Project helps create suspense and moves the action forward even when the film’s pacing seems slow. The entire film is a sweeping dream and celebration of human imagination and perseverance. It does not yet have distribution, so take any opportunity that comes up to see it and let the beautiful imagery and the charming story wash over you.