Brothers Uwe (Uwe Ochsenknecht) andGustav (Gustav-Peter Wöhler) have very little in common with each other apartfrom their bad marriages. Uwe is aself-absorbed kitchen salesman with four children whose wife Petra (Petra Zieser) gets fed up withhim and walks out on their marriage. Meanwhile, Gustav is in a sterile, childless relationship with his wifeUlrike (Ulrike Kriener). Unlike chaotic Uwe, Gustav makesa concerted effort to find inner peace in his life, working as a Feng Shuiexpert, raking his miniature Zen Garden, memorizing Asian proverbs, and practicing meditation.
Consumed by grief over his failing marriage, Uwe crashes Gustav’splanned Zen Buddhist retreat to the Monzen monastery on the Noto Peninsula. When the brothers arrive in Tokyo, Gustav’s façade ofinner peace is torn away as both men find themselves overwhelmed by their newenvironment. After a night on the town, themen are unable to find their hotel again and have run out of cash because they spent it all on booze. Their inability to communicate with a taxidriver lands them in an unfamiliar neighbourhood, and they wander aimlessly through the darkened city streets. They eventually end up in the Taito ward wherethey follow the example of the homeless people there by spending the nightsleeping in cardboard boxes.
The next morning, their situationdoes not improve and they manage to lose each other while crossing Shibuya’sfamous scramble crossing in the middle of the day. With Uwe armed only with his video camera,which he uses to record a video diary of his journey, and Gustav armed onlywith a book of Zen sayings, the two men must take on this next phase of theirjourney alone. Eventually the brothersfind each other again and make their way through a series of misadventures to theMonzen monastery where they are given the opportunity to see their lives from anew perspective through a regime of hard work and meditation.
Erleuchtung garantiert (Enlightenment Guaranteed/もんぜん, 1999) was shot entirely ondigital video and has an intimate feel to it. I enjoyed this film more than Doris Dörrie’s other Japan-themed feature Kirschblüten– Hanami (Cherry Blossoms, 2008) which was much hyped in the German media theyear after I moved here from Tokyo. The journeyof self discovery in Cherry Blossoms seemed forced, whereas the story of Uweand Gustav seems so effortless. There isa realness and a spontaneity to the characters which reminded me of the worksof Mike Leigh. Above all, the humour thatUwe Ochsenknecht and Gustav-Peter Wöhler bring to their roles keeps the filmfrom taking itself too seriously. It's a great film for people reevaluating their own lives and in need of a good laugh at the inanities of human nature.
Enlightenment Guaranteed is one of five films that I wrote about for World Film Locations: Tokyo (ed. Chris MaGee, 2011). I chose the Yanaka Cemetary as the location to focus on. Support independent film critics by ordering the book today:
The film is available on DVD in the States:
. . . in Germany:
. . . and even in Japan:
Catherine Munroe Hotes 2011
