エゴイスト「Egoisuto」
Release Date: February 10th, 2023
Duration: 120 mins.
Director: Daishi Matsunaga
Writer: Daishi Matsunaga, Kyoko Inukai (Screenplay), Makoto Takayama (Autobiographical Novel),
Starring: Ryohei Suzuki, Hio Miyazawa, Sawako Agawa, Yuko Nakamura, Iori Wada, Akira Emoto, Durian Lollobrigida,
Based on an autobiographical novel by Makoto Takayama, Egoist is a relatively straightforward but intensely moving story of love. The word egoist has negative connotations – Selfish. Conceited. It is true that one can read the main protagonist of Egoist as these things at the start of the film and one will question the motives of his relationships throughout most of the narrative and maybe even the quality of his love. By the end of the story, however, the viewer will be convinced of the profound transformative power that love can have while the film also broaches the complexities sexual minorities face when expressing it.
The egoist of the title is a handsome fashion magazine editor named Kosuke (Ryohei Suzuki). At work, he issues orders with a serious face while at play we see he is a dilettante of food and fashion. We spend a fun time with him and friends at gay bars in Shinjuku where he is the definition of “the life of the party.” Downing beer, extolling the virtues of champagne, heralding the taste of cakes, or dancing due to tipsiness, he is impressively exuberant while maintaining sophistication and class.
In his apartment there is an eye-catching antique table and chair that faces a balcony with a great view of a little Tokyo neighbourhood and there is a wardrobe full of designer clothes that you know look perfect on him. All of this visual splendour suggests cool and control, that single antique chair suggests how unreachable and maybe a bit lonely he is in his tower. As he states in the film’s brief bit of narration, the physical accoutrements are “armour,” a way to present himself to the world.
What prompted such control?
Living in a society where some still show resistance to LGBTQ people living openly.
On a journey to his father’s (Akira Emoto) house in Chiba Prefecture, audiences witness an unhappy flashback to Kosuke’s time high school as callous teenagers mock him for his sexuality during the mourning period for his mother.
Kosuke’s reaction seems justified but you get the suspicion that he has grown used to using money to not only shape himself but also his relationships with others. It certainly seems to be the case when he meets a boyishly handsome personal trainer named Ryuta (Hio Miyazawa), a high school dropout and callboy desperate for money to support his ailing mother (Sawako Agawa).
There is a quick physical attraction between the two men – and there are plenty of explicit steamy sex scenes that get across the intensity – but also the exchange of affection amidst the thrusting and cuddling.
Complications ground their relationship in reality as work and money always come up and even here Kosuke tries to buy the exclusive attention of Ryuta – 100,000 yen. However, a character change happens in Kosuke that suggests more wild passion flows underneath his cool and controlled persona and it becomes clearer and more affecting for viewers when he moves to become a part of the lives of Ryuta and his mother.
Now this simple story gains its profundity from mining the depths of love that Kosuke feels and it is so perfectly conveyed.
Ryohei Suzuki netted acting awards for his absolutely terrifying turn as a fearsome and cruel gangster in Last of the Wolves, but his performance here is out of this world. That initial meeting with him where he is with his pals has a certain theatrical affectation of gayness that threatens to be clichéd but once that settles down he embodies a troubled soul softening up in a relatable manner. Even the most cynical of viewers will see a slow transformation in Kosuke as a variety of emotions awaken – the normally unflappable man looks forlorn when Ryuta is not around and when he is present, Kosuke dotes on him in. It is more than just sex and control, it is genuine feeling and it is heart-warming as the two share intimate moments together.
Something that both normalises and accentuates the strength of their love is in hearing their elders express their experiences of love as the film broadens its definition of love beyond physicality to constancy towards family and the guys fit neatly into it.
When the film enters troubled waters between the two men, it relays everything subtly. Public displays of affection are tamped down – we get occasional close-ups to hands as they fumble around and never link fingers, a peck on the lips coming out of nowhere and never getting a reply when the two are out in the open, Kosuke is just a really good friend rather than a partner so that Ryuta’s mother remains in the dark. Miyazawa is strong as the elusive object of desire who refuses to be bought but it is Suzuki who steals the screen in moments of devastation when his beau is absent and he expresses it with a degree of restraint – smiling (or grimacing) through tears and waving people away as he still has to hide his sexuality and that of Ryuta’s. It is absolutely heart breaking to watch when we know what is going on inside him and witness how Kosuke is having to learn to live life without complete control of everything.
The film is mostly shot with a handheld camera and scenes are done with long takes. It all enhances the sense of intimacy that viewers will feel when regarding the characters but one can really appreciate the actors weaving in and around their characters, their dialogue which sparkles with spirit but also an undertow of the restraint they must show in expressing sexuality as it displays the subtleties of gay interactions in various public places.
In contrast to similarly themed films, Egoist is both rather direct and realistic in its approach to depicting and normalising gay love. It avoids the immersion-breaking moment of didacticism of Our House Party and the twisted and elongated subtleties of A Touch of Fever, and lets the emotions of its characters openly run its full course from fiery first attraction to the long-term commitment and forming a family. We get to know the two characters quite intimately, Kosuke most of all, as he finds the emotion changing him and we get a sort of satisfying narrative circling that links his trauma over losing his own mother. Soon, the once dandyish and distant protagonist has earned our empathy and understanding and his discovery of a more altruistic love is something to marvel at.
Ultimately, this film is a truly moving experience that leads us to an understanding of the protagonist and also a deeper appreciation of what love can be.
This film will get its New York Premiere, complete with a Q&A with director Daishi Matsunaga and lead actor Ryohei Suzuki on Saturday, July 15 at 20:30 at the Walter Reade Theater