FNC 2021: Bound (2020)

Bound (2020)

Director (and writer): Jean-Armand Bougrelle

Bound is a Japanese documentary that explores the traditional art of Japanese rope bondage in today’s society in regards to women. While bondage as a term itself has strong sexual connotations, these women share a different view depending on how they view it and the different roles that they have assumed to the meanings that it has for them. Its an interesting topic to explore to say the very least and has not only acts to open the society towards this community of women who practice but also the deeper elements from the techniques and art to the deeper feelings and different settings that it can take place.

Bound takes an interesting angle. It dives into the interviewers which are primarily all women who practice in different avenues. It looks at what got them interested in the first place and their own journeys with shibari and the feelings that it exposes. For some, its a liberation, others its about vulnerability, a few view it as an art while others enjoy it for its capability of being able to communicate without language. It also emphasizes on the differences in context when performed between two women or a man and woman, and whoever leads as the rope artist. In some ways, it shows a part of how these women feel about the society around them in order to search for these releases.

The community of practitioners of this rope bondage in the society also feels very varies. Its touches on what differs between each of these roles: domina, performers, models, etc. Its rather intriguing to see how the different spaces they choose to do this and the different places that some people have created in order to keep this safe space alive mostly for women who desire to have their own space to have this release and communication and yet, it has nothing to do with the sexual elements where a lot of them especially mostly exploring the women tying up women performing together and the dynamic that they have together which exceeds the romantic interest. It dials right down to the artistic element of how certain performers and models are more pleasant to watch than others.

What completes the documentary is that it also goes into a little history lesson on how shibari formed when its historical roots were as a torture device in ancient times where different knots and methods suggested different class and crime with an end game to kill. Its an opposite of how its viewed now which creates in some cases pain that brings pleasure.

Bound is a straight-forward documentary that shares the community of women who performing this mostly in secret and the different roles. It aims to share a different side of the society and a different angle to how bondage can be viewed. Its a rather eye-opening lesson in general and a rather intriguing topic. In some ways, there is a certain depth to the whole topic explored.

*Watched as coverage for Festival du Nouveal Cinema*