Photosensitivity Warning: There are three instances of powerful strobing/flashing lights that may trigger a painful response in audiences: two shortly after the title card appears and one in the climatic sequence of the film.
A sadistic sorcerer. An existential hitman. A missing monk. A depressed lover. All archetypes which normally wouldn’t be in connection with each other, but with director Toshiaki Toyoda’s wildcard-of-a-film Transcending Dimensions, the word “normal” is not on the menu. Building upon his Mt. Resurrection Wolf short film series, the film follows assassin Shinno (Ryûhei Matsuda), who is hired by Nonoka (Haruka Imô) to avenge the disappearance of her missing lover, Rosuke (Yôsuke Kubozuka) by assassinating the cruel, mocking sorcerer Ajari (Chihara Junia). Before long, a fierce battle of magic and wits ensues and Shinno soon finds himself pursuing a mysterious Japanese ascetic across space and time.
For a spoiler-free exploration of Transcending Dimensions, head to EoM Founder Douglas Davidson’s initial Fantasia International Film Festival 2025 review.
Chihara Junia as Master Hanno in TRANSCENDING DIMENSIONS. Photo courtesy of Third Window Films.
This film can be many things at once — strange, hypnotic, slow, offbeat, dark and (literally) transcendent. With all those different descriptors, you would expect such a film to be a fun, surreal ride. The surrealism is there … the fun, not so much. Debuting at Fantasia International Film Festival last year (a very fitting festival for this strange yarn), Transcending Dimensions is not an easy watch; it’s a film that stubbornly goes at its own pace and wavelength. It defies categorization. It doesn’t wait for you to comprehend what’s going on and it dares you to ponder if you’ve ever seen anything like it before.
R: Kiyohiko Shibukawa as Teppel in TRANSCENDING DIMENSIONS. Photo courtesy of Third Window Films.
When watching this film, comprehension is not necessarily required. If anything, such an attempt is admirable for an audience member. A polarizing film such is this is best felt rather than understood. The film takes us from a monastery where a sorcerer gaslights his followers into cutting off their fingers to the outer limits of space to a hospital where doctors keep a delirious monk sedated and bedridden as he travels through time and space mentally. There is literally no chill in this film, no time for the audience to collect their thoughts and perceive just what exactly is happening from one scene to the next. On top of the shifting locales, there are very weird needle drops with the film’s score, courtesy of Mars 89, Kazuhide Yamaji, and Kodo. In one slow, zoomed-out, hypnotic crane shot, there are fitting tribal drums. In another scene, as the assassin Shinno slowly walks towards the camera and Ajari sits pondering his next move, a whimsical saxophone-laced song plays throughout. Seriously, this scene is totally unnecessary as we spend a good 2-3 minutes just staring at these guys doing … nothing. There’re more than a few slow moments like these that can waste time rather than be actually beneficial to the film. But then, there’re moments of inspired brilliance such as the sequence in which we travel through space while a fierce jazzy score blares through the speakers (for those who suffer from epilepsy, there’s a flashing lights portion of this sequence to steer clear of). This sequence feels like the avant-garde offspring of the “Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite” sequence from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). Another noteworthy swing is the way the film uses its characters to represent different perspectives on faith. As evil Ajari manipulates those who believe in him and his sorcery for his own selfish gain, Shinno presents a more nihilistic, detached approach as he proclaims that he believes in nothing. That leads to Rosuke, who is the inverse of the two; instead of taking the side of manipulation or aversion, he completely gives himself in to the magic, leading to some great awe-inspiring sequences.
TRANSCENDING DIMENSIONS packshot. Photo courtesy of Third Window Films.
Director Toshiaki Toyoda (Blue Spring) has a distinct polarizing style that can be both illuminating and so painfully slow that it makes Nicolas Winding Refn (Only God Forgives) and Andrei Tarkovsky (Mirror) look like Michael Bay (6 Underground). As stated before, this film is meant to be felt rather than understood. The film’s transcendent scenes feel Kubrickian while its offbeat, colorful tone feels more in relation to Alejandro Jodorowsky (The Holy Mountain). It’s not a film I would easily recommend, but I’d say, if one is aiming to watch something they simply have never seen before, then this is it.
L-R: Ryûhei Matsuda as Shinno and Yosuke Kubozuka as Rosuke in TRANSCENDING DIMENSIONS. Photo courtesy of Third Window Films.
With this release from Third Window Films, there is a solid number of supplemental features to choose from, including an extra disc containing Toyoda’s 2005 film The Blood of Rebirth. Also, there’s a feature commentary from the director, three short films by the director, and a video essay by Peter Glagowski.
Transcending Dimensions Special Features:
Disc 1: Transcending Dimensions
- Toshiaki Toyoda feature audio commentary
- Peter Glagowski Video Essay
- Such Is the Person I Wish to Be – Three Short Films from Toshiaki Toyoda
- Trailer
Disc 2: The Blood of Rebirth
- Toshiaki Toyoda interview
Available on Blu-ray May 26th, 2026.
For more information or to purchase, head to the official Third Window Films Transcending Dimensions webpage.
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Categories: Home Release, Recommendation
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