A favorite of Jim Jarmusch, John Woo and Quentin Tarantino, legendary Japanese filmmaker Seijun Suzuki surprised his fans with this delightfully chipper and playful musical based on an ancient folk tale. Zhang Ziyi stars as the title character, a shape-shifting princess who enchants an exiled prince in a totally mind-blowing forest. Suzuki mixes sumptuously artificial set design with CGI effects and a most eclectic array of non-traditional forms of music (Broadway, rock, even rap) for this “Technicolor” fairy tale.

Shelf Talk: Suzuki’s cult following has grown by leaps and bounds in the last decade, thanks to homages from the filmmakers mentioned above, Criterion releases of his films and Sundance Channel airings of key works. The presence of the very popular Ziyi (Memoirs of a Geisha) should do much to inspire impulse rentals by the adventurous who are unaware of Suzuki’s reputation.