We all need to escape, once in a while, from being serious people in the real world, trying to ace the big test, land the big contract, or earn an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress. Rinko Kikuchi, who accomplished the last feat for her turn as a hearing-impaired high-school girl in "Babel," evidently thought so when she signed to star in "Zukan ni Notte Nai Mushi (The Insects Unlisted in the Encyclopedia)."
This comedy by Satoshi Miki ("In the Pool," "Damage") has about the same relationship to Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's deep-think drama as a marijuana-fueled giggle fest does to an academic conference on cross-cultural communication. (Though a cynic might argue that the babble of the former and the pontifications of the latter are roughly equal in comprehensibility.) In any case, it's obvious that Kikuchi and the other cast members had a great, goofy time making this film. They also put paid to the claim, much beloved by comics, that "comedy is harder than drama."
"To be a real grown-up playing this sort of totally idiotic role and these sorts of idiotic scenes — this is a precious experience I may never have again," commented fellow cast member Yusuke Iseya in a program note. That just about sums it up.