jbrownt Review of Cutie and the Boxer

Cutie and the Boxer (2013)

Good movie, but a bit of a snooze sometimes.

[6/10 · 2 August 2019]

Cutie and the Boxer describes the tumultuous relationship between two artists, the married couple of Noriko and Ushio Shinohara. Ushio is a japanese artist renowned for painting by punching a canvas with painted boxing gloves, though popular, his work does not sell well. Noriko is his younger wife that never had the opportunity to create as much as her husband. It does not help the situation that Noriko's inked depictions of "Cutie" and Bully" are much more accessible and understandable than Ushio's art. The movie makes you question why Noriko loves Ushio but also lets both qualities shine through. Noriko describes their relationship as two flowers in one pot, sometimes they don't get enough nutrients themselves but in the end two beautiful flowers bloom. The film shows how some suffer for art, Ushio and Noriko are poor and struggling but they are making art and art is what they love."Life is wonderful, when it's blown to pieces is when it becomes art."