Melancholic

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from a film with this title. It turns out to be unusual in that the title explains the main character without him having to explain himself.

But this is an interesting, unpretentious and darkly comic drama about a lonely semi-employed graduate who seems unable to find anything to inspire him in life. However, he gets far more than he expects when he gets a casual job in a bathhouse, motivated mostly by trying to get to talk to an old schoolmate who is a regular. The bathhouse turns out to be a front for certain Yakuza activities. And the shy young man may well turn out to be more interested than he should be in making money from the distinctly illegal goings-on.

The film is nicely paced and always interesting and quite funny in parts. The characters are well acted and oddly likeable despite their unlikeable career choices. The film slightly runs out of ideas in the end, although at least we are spared a contrived twist. The low key ending is oddly in keeping with the overall tone.