Mar 1, 2023
Junji Ito's 'Fashion Model: Cursed Framing' serves as an addition to his previous 'Fashion Model' wherein a monstrous model haunts the protagonist as he tries to shoot a film. It is a short read, and it showcases Ito's great ideas that are often the main hook of his one-shots/manga.
The 8-page 'Cursed Framing' follows an up-and-coming model who has a fear of her body being fragmented in photos (those photos that do not show the full body). It is a very interesting representation of the fragility of one's own identity, and the fear that you cannot control other people's perceptions of you and your identity. The
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model's own agency is taken away by the magasine as they publish photos that have cropped out parts of her body. Her own identity has been reconstructed and sold off against her will, and she struggles with this due to her status as a new model who must conform to the magasine if she wishes to continue.
Despite its short runtime, it offers a frighteningly real portrayal of the deconstruction and commodification of the identity as she is literally 'consumed' by the industry that leeches off her. Two interesting interpretations occur to me, surrounding one's public identity - the construction of identity in order to 'fit in', to conform to society, and the construction of identity in order to sell a narrative (whether it be social media or acting); in both cases, public identity is something that we try to build up ourselves for various reasons, and it can often conflict with an identity which we might don in private.
Fuchi's (the original Fashion Model) inclusion here reflects both the jealousy and competition present in life/the industry, her literal 'shark teeth' consuming the model in this cutthroat food chain of the world of 'showbiz'. The final image of the model's corpse cut and framed within a square epitomises what I've been discussing, as her identity is eternally stolen from her and disfigured by another's own conflicting perceptions of that same identity.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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