A subject grows into a logic and ego that gives him a sense of consistency and mediates his dealings with the other/Other. This imaginary protective shield, however, is far from perfect and the ego can easily be disturbed by certain events and signifiers.   

Heso’s short film illustrates what kind of events and signifiers can disturb the logic of an obsessional neurotic. On a Boat follows Chu (Kiyohiko Shibukawa), the obsessional husband of Sara (Ryo Matsuura), as the house-party he meticulously planned unfolds in unexpected ways. Edamame (Nairu Yamamoto), Sara’s friend, acts as if she is at home. And her partner, who arrives extremely late, dares to bring uninvited guests along.    

So, how can we describe Chu’s logic? He is, in short, a subject who tries to annul the desire of the Other by controlling every signifier and object within his space. The buzzing fly in one of rooms nor the cigarette thrown on the ground by Edamame might not embody the Other’s desire as such, but these events nevertheless function as an infraction of an uncontrollable Otherness that must be erased. More than producing objects to silence the desire of the Other, Chu controls his environment to ensure that no new objects need to be produced nor uninvited sparks of desire to be extinguished (Narra-note 1).  

At the dinner table, Edamame suddenly confronts Sara with her unexpected marriage and her strange marital partner. The element that stands out in this sequence is Sara’s failed repetition of signifiers. While Edamame reminds her what she drunkenly said on a boat (‘Nothing is Impossible’; ‘We’re Free’.), Sara only succeeds to repeat the first sentence to describe her current situation. The silence that follows her enunciation causes the unsaid truth to reverberate louder than anything else: within this marital relationship, she does not feel not free. When she, later in the narrative, sings a song together with Edamame about freedom and boats, the spectator only hears her unvocalized truth. Or, to put it differently, what fuels her emotional singing is nothing other than her sense of being not free within her marital bond.

The unexpected twists and revelations during the party slowly destabilize Chu. Yet, the event that inaugurates his destabilization is not the intrusion of Other people a such but the references to Sara’s free-spirited past. Edamame does not merely confront Chu with what he does not know about Sara, but also with the repressed but irreducible fact that, within relationships, something of the other’s subjectivity, of his desire, will always escape one’s control (Narra-note 2). How will Chu respond to this uncomfortable confrontation? Can he keep calm or will he act out?

Heso’s narrative is visually pleasing due to his natural, but darkish lightning-design, the subtle film-grain, and his reliance on depth-of-field. The lightning-design creates an interplay between light and shadow that generates many fleeting pleasing visual tensions. The heavy reliance of depth-of-field, besides giving On A Boat a certain visual softness, helps strengthening the impact of many visual tensions on the spectator (Cine-note 1).

Heso’s reliance of silence allows the vocalized signifiers reverberate more powerfully and Chu’s attempt to retain control more impactful. The silence, however, is not merely a decorative tool to heighten the impact of the finale, but a present absence that reverberates the control Chu exerts over his space.

On A Boat proves to be an incredibly satisfying experience. Heso delivers a well-structured narrative and a well-crafted visual composition, yet it is Kiyohiko Shibukawa and Ryo Matsuura that, with their great performances, ensure that the exploration of the frail stability of an obsessional neurotic does not miss its impact on the spectator.

Notes

Narra-note 1: In the finale, Chu does end up referring to all the objects he has procured for her.

Narra-note 2: The fly that Chu entraps in a ball of tape beautifully illustrates his subjective logic. What he aims to do with Sara, his wife, is to keep her entrapped into his beautiful space and keep her desire dead.

Cine-note 1: Heso also fluidly integrates moments of slow-motion into his visual fabric.