What a crazy movie! You have to be on something to enjoy it.

I would never ever watch this movie again. Tripping or not.

The tragic demise of a young drug dealer who, after witnessing his life flash before his eyes, embarks on a tour through the streets of Kabukicho, spying on the aftermath of his passing while seeking an opportunity for reincarnation. I must confess that I remembered the film as a much more psychedelic spectacle and a significantly less melancholic and depressing experience. Perhaps the weight of age on my shoulders is helping me feel the void more? The underlying plot, albeit fragmented and worth less than twenty minutes, is subordinate to its portrayal onscreen—a masterful fusion of immersive subjective long takes, evocative glimpses into the protagonist's past from behind his shoulders, and swirling shots that seamlessly oscillate between arthouse and filth exploitation. Despite the janky CG used for the computer-generated aerial perspectives and wide-angle shots, the overall visual presentation continues to feel innovative and impactful, continually capturing the viewer's attention. Nonetheless, the latter half of the film languishes in its excessive length, diluting the overall impact of the experience. Furthermore, the way the protagonist meets his demise feels a little far-fetched, if not outright ridiculous - although it could all be interpreted as a massive drug-induced hallucination under the influence of the book borrowed from the French guy. Not that it matters.

Gotta say I totally love the trippy, neon, psychedelic aestethic, the locations, and also the idea of shooting in this "ghost" 1st person subjective. But, there is a massive problem with the story and how it develops, and the problem is that there is no story. At all. And when there is not a story to develop, an almost 3 hours movie is a real baaad move. In the first 30 minutes it's all fascinating, the dialogues, the situation, but at some point it looks like no one had a decent idea on how develop and close the movie, so everything keeps going on, and on, and on. Until it became redundant, and even boring. And (my personal opinion) a psychedelic movie that results boring, well, looks like a failure. I mean it could have been an original, interesting movie, even a game-changer, but in the end a nice idea and some cool shots can't save it. It lacks too much of other things. The impression is that it is all too pompous, too self absorbed in the idea of creating something so cool, so edgy, so unconventional and provocative, that all this just became a style exercise with no purpose at all.