TAKASHI MIIKE ON PINS AND NEEDLES

Although Takashi Miike doesn’t speak a word of English, he effortlessly commands the focus of a conference room in Seattle’s hip “W” Hotel. The Japanese director of “Audition” and “Agitator” is weathering a series of interviews, with an interpreter standing by to decipher questions. Outside, the chameleonic Puget Sound skies are morphing from cloudy gray to clear blue, in much the same way that Miike’s unpredictable films twist from one extreme to another. Takashi Miike’s fresh takes on familiar genres make him Japan’s latest emerging master of film…