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Review

A deceptively simple catfight comedy which unfolds with only two characters, entirely within the confines of their shared apartment (the film's title is the Japanese abbreviation for a 2-bedroom apartment with Living Room, Dining Room, and Kitchen), 2LDK packs a startling amount of visual inventiveness, razor-sharp wit, and sheer filmmaking fervor into its brief running time. An absurdist allegory for anyone with roommate difficulties, 2LDK involves two struggling actresses, small town girl Kimi and seasoned glam chick Lana, sharing a Tokyo apartment and competing for the same role in a new film (and for the same man). When petty squabbles turn into fits of rage, their cohabitation problems get much worse than labeling food in the refrigerator: by the time they break out the power tools and electrocution devices, it's clear that these two ladies have forfeited a lot more than their security deposit. 2LDK director Yukihiko Tsutsumi, one of Japan’s most promising new filmmakers, pushes his film's premise to the extreme, making this twisted black comedy a little gem not to be missed.