Director: Teinosuke Kinugasa Set in an asylum, A Page Of Madness tells the story of a janitor and his wife, the latter of which also happens to be a patient at the asylum. As the film progresses, the hallucinations of the protagonist grow in intensity, eventually culminating in a maddening display of indecipherable images and nauseatingly frantic editing. The film does a great job of capturing a real sense of madness, so much so that it can be difficult to sit through at times. The arrangement of shots can be truly frustrating and the pacing only heightens this feeling of distress; when the patients start to revolt, it can be almost too much to bear. If the film wasnt silent, you can imagine what the soundtrack would sound like: an exasperating, indefatigable clashing of instruments, a noisy jumble of incompatible sounds that only emphasises the madness of the characters. If youre planning to watch the film, make sure you take a few breaks, especially if you plan on trying to make sense of it. Otherwise, it might just drive you insane.
