Hivos Tiger Awards Competition review - HARUKO'S PARANORMAL LABORATORY by Lisa Takeba

TV comes to live in the whacky world created by filmmaker Lisa Takeba for her latest feature film Haruko's Paranormal Laboratory, which had its world premiere in the Hivos Tiger Awards competition of the 44th International Film Festival Rotterdam.
 
A creative rollercoaster ride of a movie that in many ways has a lot in common with the creative style of Japanese cartoon TV series. With vibrant colours, we catch an insightful glimpse at the endlessly imaginative mind of Lisa Takeba, who not only brings a television to life here, but also fills her story and her film with plenty of curious and interesting characters, some with a penchant for cosplay, and pays close attention to translating her Alice in Wonderland type of world with a competent and exciting art direction.
 
Haruko's Paranormal Laboratory  is the story of a young woman who has always sought to escape her unfulfilling life by wishing to experience something paranormal. That is exactly what happens one day when her TV comes to life, and she instantly falls in love with him. However, soon enough, it's clear to see that TV has other demands that are slowly causing him to alienate his girl and behave more like a human, with human needs, vulnerabilities and imperfections then a loyal electrical appliance. For instance, one of the main things that drives the character of TV, is the need to discover more about the essence of his existance - which in many ways also naturally feels like a paradox and a delightful concept of contemporary satire.
The vibe of the film is one that thrives on comedy and flirts, quite openly, with surrealism. On a superficial scale, it wastes little time with scientific explanations on the more twisted sides of the story - such as, how does it come to happen that the TV comes to life in the first place. But that is also why the film never misses a beat, never appears sluggish and in its length that just barely exceeds the hour and a quarter, never really fades out.
 
Nevertheless, it's tough not to point out some imperfections in the script, and in particular a certain side storyline concerning the theme of family, which is one of great importance in the film and that is hard to follow also because not enough focus is given to the establishment of a rewarding emotional rapport between the girl and her father. It's also tough to understand whether we should waste our time into rooting for the romance between the girl and the TV to actually develop and survive the many challenges they encounter along the way. 
 
Despite this, it is absolutely admirable how Haruko's Paranormal Laboratory manages to remain quite interesting and never seem too shallow, due to an underlying warmth and a surprising restraint that backs up the themes of escapism and relationship in the modern world, things that are increasingly becoming major concerns in today's post-idealistic society.