Bright Future (2002)

Two friends work in a Tokyo factory. Yuji dreams of a bright future whilst Mamoru spends his time with his unusual pet, a luminous but venomous jellyfish. Both harbour an uncontrollable rage and in one such moment of violence, Mamoru kills his boss' family. In the ensuing struggle, the tank holding the jellyfish is upturned and the deadly pet slips through the floorboards. Facing the death penalty, Mamoru hangs himself in his cell just as his father comes over to plead with his son. Instead, Yuj goes to work for him but equally discovers the jellyfish survived and has been multiplying in the canals. Could this be a sign of a better future?

Bright Future, released by Tartan Video on 10th September 2007, is a surreal voyage into social fantasy. Director Kyoshi Kurosawa has become a master of unconventional psycho-dramas such as his serial killer chiller Cure and internet community allegory, Pulse.

His preferred style is to avoid the heavy use of special-effects, creating his atmosphere through the tools of filmmaking: editing, lighting, sound. He equally enjoys deconstructing narratives but he retains a sense of horror bubbling beneath the surface. He brings together Jo Odagiri (Princess Racoon) and Tadanobu Asano (Zatoichi; Vital and Invisible Waves) who form the core of this dysfunctional buddy-buddy movie, which tries to untangle a bright future for a younger generation caught in the tentacles of a dehumanising society. Tartan is set to release more Kurosawa titles in the coming months, which include Cure, Séance and the latest in the J-horror series, Retribution.

Please note - Disc special features are subject to change, may differ from format to format and/or may differ from region to region.