At the outset, the worship of female teen idols by salarymen in Japan’s otaku culture seems like organized pedophilia. While the ickiness never goes away, filmmaker Kyoko Miyake delves into the multilayered psychology and sociology behind this phenomenon.

Among the middle-aged men who find empowerment from their idols to rebel against the system, Miyake peels back the layers to reveal complex roots in Japan’s economic depression, technological developments, loneliness and failure, gender dynamics, and escapism from stifling cultural pressures. An uncomfortable yet gawk-inducing watch.