The Great Happiness Space: Tale of an Osaka Love Thief

“incredible documentary (and available on youtube!) set in early 2000s osaka, following the culture around young male escort clubs and their clients. aesthetically beautiful and nostalgic, and an unexpected lesson in niche cultural literacy. i find myself going back to watch it a couple times a year.”

“Very fascinating and sad documentary about male host clubs in Japan. Nothing looks cooler than Tokyo in the early 2000s- pair that with the desperate alienation of urban nightlife and you’ve got a winner.”

“Doc on host clubs in Japan, so bleak but funny. They don’t make vérité like this anymore. Too honest.”

“This is a fascinating, funny, heartbreaking documentary about a host club in early-aughts Osaka where women pay the male hosts to essentially flirt and hang out with them for however long they can afford. I don't know the astrology of this filmmaker or anyone in this, but Libra is about relationships and this documentary gets at the heart of deep truths about desire, connection, and the power of pretty boys.”