A Guru Is Born

by Takeshi Kitano

Having lost his job and his girlfriend, Kazuo becomes a member of a religious sect, after seeing the Guru heal an old woman in a wheelchair. He soon discovers the secrets of success in the sect are much the same as the business world, the power of suggestion playing a larger role than faith.

When the Guru unexpectedly dies, Kazuo is nominated to continue the sect as the new Guru.

Genres: Japanese Literature, Fiction, Japan

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Native name for Takeshi Bīto

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 1 out of 5]

Takeshi Kitano has had an extremely interesting career. He's been a comedian, an actor, a film director and he designed what has been considered one of the most unfair video games ever made (look up Takeshi's Challenge. It's hilarious how unfair/ridiculous the game was designed). Overall he's been very successful and has had a wonderful career. I personally love him as a director with his films Hana-bi and Zatoichi are both amazing. His attempt at a novel though? That my dear friends, is better forgotten.

The book was first published in 1990 which was an interesting time for him. He was already a successful comedian, and he had finished his first serious film (as both an actor and director) with 1989's Violent Cop. His second serious film (Boiling Point) was coming out the same year. This seems to be a time of uncertainty for him. Would his career as a serious director take off? It was clear that he didn't want to be labeled as just a comedian, but the studios considered his new films a risk and certainly not what they were intending when they hired him (apparently they were expecting a comedic cop film like Beverly Hills Cop and instead got something closer to Mean Streets). Well, if his film career as a serious director didn't take off, he had one more ace up his sleeve… a novel.

The book follows Kazuo, a hapless young 20-something who, feeling lost in life, joins a cult. Through his actions, he actually rises up high in its ranks and we watch him start with belief and learn the art of manipulation.

Honestly, this is an interesting idea for a book. It could be a commentary on how people use religion to manipulate others. It can discuss belief (or lack thereof) and how people can go from wanting to make things better to cynics. It also, given his reputation, had a possibility of being very funny.

It fails at literally everything. The jokes are not funny. The character moves from idea to idea so fast that it's clear that he's just a blank slate the author is using to voice ideas. He has no distinct personality and what little he does have changes depending on what Kitano needs to discuss. Yes, this is a translation, and so perhaps the blame could fall on the translator rather than Kitano for some of that… but the plot and characters are just so bland that I can't imagine that it's only the translator at fault here.

Seriously, this book is awful. I only finished it because it became fascinating in the same way that Ed Wood's movies were… they're a train wreck and I just couldn't look away. Not suggested for anyone, not even Kitano's fans. 1/5 stars

[April · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was supposed to be a satirical look at Japanese cults but ultimately fails to satisfy. Themes of ends vs. means, (gross) pragmatism, nihilism and religious cynicism are brought up but generally inconclusive. I suppose the purpose of the book was to express the ridiculousness of cults and promote a general "everything is meaningless" message. Ultimately it's pretty humorless and boring and not especially insightful. Also, there's only one likable character. I was never personally invested in this book or particularly impressed.

Meh.

[Neury72 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Se lit facilement. J'aime beaucoup le style Kitano. Phrasé qui va à l'essentiel.

Dans cet ouvrage, il décrit très bien le mécanisme d'une secte imaginaire qui utilise toutes les ficelles pour attirer le plus large public.

L'analyse philosophique, pour ne pas dire ésotérique, est très pertinente.

Le portrait de chaque personnage est bien délimité, et le parcours du héros est très intéressant. Il m'a tellement captivée que j'ai dévoré ses aventures mystiques page après page.

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un "Candide" giapponese... contro sette e religioni.

[Lucas Barwenczik · Rating 2 out of 5]

Filmemacher sind selten gute Autoren, "A Guru is Born" wirkt wie ein leicht überarbeitetes Drehbuch, das keinen Geldgeber gefunden hat. Eine sehr dünne Sekten- und Religions-Satire, die im Grunde nur aus Dialogen und kurzen Prosa-Einschüben besteht. Die beschreiben in der Regel Szenen, die eigentlich lieber Bilder geworden wären.

Kitanos Film funktionieren meist über Leerstellen und melancholische Verstimmungen, die in der etwas comichaften Sprache nicht zum Ausdruck kommen. Film ist besser darin, Einbuchtungen in der Zeit und das erliegen des Erieignissflusses zu schildern, weil im Text immer neue Worte nachdringen, während Bilder sich wiederholen dürfen, auch wenn es bei z.B. Michael Snow natürlich spannende Hybridversuche in diese Richtung gibt.

[Giulio Marinelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kitano affronta in queste pagine il tema dell'origine della religione e del suo ruolo nella vita degli uomini, attraverso gli occhi del protagonista Kazuo. Il ragazzo dopo essere entrato nella comunità religiosa di un guru, farà la conoscenza di canno, mura e di Shiba. Il primo è un giovane piano di fervore spirituale e fede, contrapposto al secondo il capo degli uffici generali della comunità e crede nella sola autorità cibo della religione, capace di fare emergere la volontà di fare negli uomini. Romanzo breve dagli spiriti spunti interessanti un po' lento ma breve

[Sae-chan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is what organized religion is all about. No room for personal faith, discipline, or ascetic practice. All is about numbers. That too can be massaged when needed.

But don't get me wrong. I believe true religious guys really exist out there. The problem is they won't be well-known, have a big number of followers, or perform for the public. In this book, I feel that the author generalizes all cults. And doing so while his pinching his nose.

[Stefano · Rating 3 out of 5]

The beginning was a bit weak to me: during the rest of the book, Kazuo appears as extremely prone to reflection and critical thinking; his decision to suddenly join the religious group seemed a bit out of the blue, too impulsive to fit the character. I liked the whole debate on God and the different souls of the religious business though. The end, again, was a bit weak.

[Massimiliano Scordamaglia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Recensione completa qui:
http://ultimavisione.wordpress.com/20...

[Jc · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was interesting to read about inside religious cult story. I enjoyed it.

[Marissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

The blurb made the book sound like it was going to be much more interesting than it actually was. Glad it was a short read. Could have been summarised as a 20 page fable.

Characters were poorly-developed and very simple. Any philosophical points and ideas weren't finished off very well, they didn't really hit home or connect in any way.

The best bit was actually the brief tale about the birds at the start of the book.