Extro

It’s usually only the main actors and actresses that captivate us while we rarely pay much attention to the subtle art of extras, who put their all into what might end up being 3 seconds of screen time. An injustice Naoki Murahashi and his crew want to fix by letting one such extra, Kozo Haginoya, take center stage. They follow the 63-year-old man around, from sizzling breakfast bacon at 7 a.m. to sunset. His dream is to one day play a fireman like his idol Steve McQueen, in The Towering Inferno. That’s the first 15 minutes… Then the filmmakers hop onto the next best thing that catches their eye: a mythical bird called Ogamo, a prehistoric monster from outer space, a drug dealer posing as an extra, two undercover police officers that discover a passion while on the job… No wonder cult director Nobuhiko Obayashi accepted to be part of this mockumentary: the absurd digressions and free associations at work here bring to mind his own House. Let’s not shy away from Big Statements: we think Extro is the most wonderful ode to the art and industry of cinema since Why Don't You Play in Hell? In short, a loving and hilarious view behind the scenes of movie magic creation. (Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival)