The Third Murder is a film that was released in 2017 and was directed/written by Koreeda Hirokazu(After The Storm, Like Father, Like Son). The film has won many awards in Japan that include picture of the year, best screenplay, and best supporting actor. The film also entered the main competition at the 74th Venice International Film Festival. An all star cast of Fukuyama Masaharu, Yakusho Koji, and, Hirose Suzu(My Little Sister) graces the film respectively.
A man is charged with the murder of a man that he killed on the river bank before lighting his body ablaze. He is sentenced to death row but there seems to be more to the "truth."
Hirokazu constructs a world that introduces that darkness lurking within people's hearts. Lurking inside of human law also to be honest. It's a film that slowly shows you that life isn't fair and there's nothing you can do to change that. Or can you change it with the truth? Hirokazu's characters act in rhythm to this question. The film makes you believe that the objective is to find the truth in the beginning as the opening scene is the bait to draw viewers in. Then you begin to realize that The Third Murder is an entirely different kind of storytelling all together. Viewers are actually given the truth without knowing that they have the truth. Some part of our minds are made greedy by the riddle filled script that you expect more. I'll will tell you that there's more but not in the normal way that all of us expect a mystery thriller to play out. The Third Murder has so many different view points that you can observe the film from. There's so many that even the characters start to question their own actions. Some of the lines are said in riddles so you have to focus on getting all the clues given for the uncovering of the full truth. I even got a little confused at one point in the film because of all the moving forward until suddenly the story moves backwards to retrace it's steps. You come to find that this film isn't about the murder itself. This film is more about life not being fair and the point is driven home by the conclusion. Ending this film doesn't make anyone feel good. Instead you are left with a life lesson of reality.
Fukuyama doesn't bring any new acting chops that haven't been seen before. I still love him as an actor and he was the main reason I watched this film. Seeing him as a lawyer just reminds me of the Galileo films. He has the charisma to embody this type of role. It's just nothing new. The applause defiantly goes to Koji and Suzu for their performances. Hirokazu wrote the script so that each character had deep thought out background stories. These two performances were so convincing that you got confused by their mere presences and the lines that their characters spoke. It was a real gem to watch a film where characters intrigue me so much that them just having a dialogue in a scene makes the film interesting. I can see why both of actor and actress won awards for their performances.
Scenery was a huge part of the message in the film. Every aspect of a small town in Japan was beautifully shot. Especially the snowy landscape that looked lonely and forgotten. Contrastingly, the murder at the river was shot from various angles showcasing emotion of wrong doing. The musical score was similar to a family member that supported the breathtaking scenes. Japanese film creators know how to get a rise out of the audience. I keep replaying certain scenes in my head as I type this…. [INSERT ME LAUGHING.]
The Third Murder is an awkward new take on film making. Not everyone will take a liking to this film but I believe it earned a lot of respect from viewers because of how riveting the film can be. This film will have you thinking hard after watching it once until you're rushing to watch it again.
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