The past reverberates into the present no matter how far you run from it.
Based on the acclaimed novel The Earthquake Bird by Susanna Jones, the film Earthquake Bird is set in 1980s Tokyo, where a mysterious Swedish expat named Lucy Fly (Alicia Vikander) is questioned regarding the disappearance of her outgoing American friend Lily (Riley Keough). Prior to going missing, the two friends had become locked in a difficult love triangle with a handsome but enigmatic Japanese photographer named Teiji (Naoki Kobayashi).
Still Alice director Wash Westmoreland delivers a frosty and sedate Hitchockian mystery with Earthquake Bird, which feels appropriate considering the initially enigmatic protagonist at its centre.
Oscar-winner Alicia Vikander gives an understated turn as the ill at ease Lucy who seems to come out of her shell somewhat with her cool love interest, until she begins to fear being supplanted by the charismatic and confident Lily, played with a natural allure by the consistently impressive Keough.
Despite no fault on J-Pop star Kobayashi’s individual performance, there is little chemistry between him and Vikander, meaning much of the resulting drama means we are less invested than we could perhaps be.
As the film begins to peel back the layers of Lucy’s past, the audience might expect more of a pay-off than is resultantly delivered and the slow pace will no doubt turn some off if they were expecting more of a twisty thriller, instead providing more of an uncomfortable menage a trois.
There is no denying that the film is gorgeously shot and the use of Japan as a character itself in the film is well-realised, with it initially appearing a peaceful place where Lucy is at an ease before increasingly becoming another source of her anxiety, with aid from a thumping score from Atticus Ross, Leopold Ross and Claudia Same.
However, the psychological unravelling of Lucy that lies at the crux of the film never really feels intense enough to provide a riveting sense of danger and darkness, ultimately leaving the film feeling a little too inert.
And yet despite the rather telegraphed themes in the conclusion of Earthquake Bird, the performance of its lead star ensures it remains highly watchable throughout.
Verdict
Earthquake Bird is aesthetically pleasing and well-performed but fails to live up to its initial promises of psychological danger.
Earthquake Bird is released on Netflix on November 15, 2019.
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