Kikujiro (1999) [Film Review]

Kikujiro; or, There and Back Again

If you’re into modern Japanese cinema, you must have heard about Takeshi Kitano. Some of the critics hate him for his yakuza dramas, whereas others hail him as the successor of Akira Kurosawa. Regardless of diverse opinions about Kitano, he is indeed one of the most influential movie directors out there. In view of the on-going summer aura, I decided to review the film which is in almost every top 5 list of Kitano’s best pictures. Grab your backpacks and prepare for a road trip with Kikujiro.

Release Info

Directed by: Takeshi Kitano Starring: Yusuke Sekiguchi, Beat Takeshi, Kayoko Kishimoto
Language: Japanese Original Title: Kikujirō no Natsu (Kikujirō's Summer) Runtime: 121 min

Plot

Masao (Yusuke Sekiguchi) is a little boy who is looked after by his grandmother in Tokyo. With the end of a school year, Masao finds himself lonely as his friends go on holiday trips with their parents. One day, he accidentally finds at home the address of his mother whom he has never seen. Masao leaves home on his own, determined to reach Toyohashi which is 180 miles away from Tokyo. Yet, he is immediately attacked by a group of teenagers. Grandmother’s neighbour, Kikujiro’s wife (Kayoko Kishimoto) intervenes and after hearing the boy’s story, she orders her husband, a lazy ex-yakuza slob (Kitano) to accompany Masao on his long journey. In consequence, a quiet boy and an aggressive thug begin an extraordinary trip across Japan during which they discover how much they have in common.

 

This Mister is strange

First of all, Kikujiro is not an ordinary road trip movie. Well, every Kitano’s film is not ordinary in its own right, but this is the issue for a whole separate article. Kikujiro pushes itself forward out of Kitano’s filmography with slow-paced narration, phantasmagorical imagery, and elements of magic realism. All in all, the story is told from the perspective of Masao, as we see consecutive parts of his trip arranged into the entries of his diary. Nevertheless, although Kikujiro focuses on dead serious issues of rejection, alienation, and solitude, it manages to deliver its content in a light and comedic manner. That is mostly due to Kitano’s comedic background as well as the ironic take on existential anti-heroes the director used to exploit so much in, for example, Violent Cop (1989), Sonatine (1993), and Hana-bi (1997).

 

The most interesting thing in Kikujiro is perhaps not the story, but the characters. On the one hand we have Masao who is on the search for his mother; on the other, there is Kikujiro who has already lost his mother. Only when the truth about Masao’s mother is revealed halfway in the picture, Kikujiro finally comes out of his shell and attempts to console the boy. As a result, the trip back to Tokyo becomes much more meaningful to both of them as they encounter strange but likeable characters (who seem to be taken straight out of Haruki Murakami’s novels).

 

In terms of performances, nothing much can be said apart from that they’re flawless. Kitano gives a stellar performance as Kikujiro, yet it is Yusuke Sekiguchi as Masao who is the heart of the picture. I’ve read a few negative comments on the internet that the kid was miscast, but in my opinion, he was a great casting choice. With his ordinary presence and lack of acting experience, Sekiguchi managed to bring natural childish innocence as well as internal loneliness which made his character so relatable. I’m quite surprised that he never played in anything else after Kikujiro.

 

Of other notable mentions, Kayoko Kishimoto graces the film with her appearance, but is given a very limited screen time. Also, Gurêto Gidayû and Rakkyo Ide do hilarious job as the bikers. As far as I can remember, the scene of “alien visitation” was spoofed in Kitano’s other film Glory to the Filmmaker! (2007). In addition, we should not forget about Joe Hisashi, the film’s composer and a frequent collaborator of Kitano. Hisashi’s music for Kikujiro is one of my all-time favourite scores by him (this and Sonatine). Especially the track called Summer will definitely get you in a holiday mood.

Recommendations

Definitely recommended to everyone. Kikujiro is, in my personal opinion, Kitano’s best picture. If you want to explore Kitano’s films, but you’re too afraid to get into his yakuza flicks, then Kikujiro is the best choice to start with. His other films are undeniably amazing and special, but Kikujiro hits the nail right on the head with its simple premise, which is unexpectedly turned upside down as the film progresses. This is not a story about a man and a boy becoming friends. This is a story about a boy being saved by kindness of complete strangers.

Overall score: 10/10

Dearest (2012) [Film Review]

Dearest; or, Love Conquers All

This week’s review will be about the last movie in the acting career of the late Ken Takakura, directed by his frequent collaborator Yasuo Furuhata.

Release Info

Directed by: Yasuo Furuhata Starring: Ken Takakura, Yūko Tanaka, Kōichi Satō, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi
Language: Japanese Original Title: Anata e Runtime: 110 min

Plot

The film tells the story of Eiji Kurashima (Ken Takakura), an aged prison guard mourning his wife who has recently passed away. Shortly after the cremation of her body, Kurashima receives a letter in which his wife asks him to scatter her ashes in her hometown in Nagasaki Prefecture. In consequence, Kurashima sets out on a picturesque and phantasmagorical journey through Japan, recalling the memories of his wife, and meeting a variety of interesting strangers along the way.

Something more than just a love story

From the synopsis above, you may infer that Dearest is just another standard melodrama about getting over the loss of a loved one. Well, I beg to disagree. In this picture, Yasuo Furuhata managed to connect together elements of a road film, a drama, and a human interest story. The character of Mr Kurashima is a standard everyman who spent the majority of his life in loneliness until one day, he finally discovered his true love. Yet, after the wife's passing, he goes on a journey that the two always wanted to make; and I’ve got to say that Kurashima’s travel is taken almost straight from the pages of Haruki Murakami’s novels. We not only get an overview of Japan’s most beautiful tourist landmarks, but also meet several bizarre yet extraordinary individuals who are just as lost in their daily existence as Kurashima.

Dearest marks the last performance of Ken Takakura in his acting career (unfortunately, he died in 2014); however, just as in his previous works, he gives a magnificent performance also in this picture. Although it is pretty odd to see an 80-year-old prison guard still on duty and married to a woman in her 60s, Takakura makes it believable and hence adds more reality into Mr Kurashima’s character, making him seem more tragic.

The supporting actors also did a fine job, especially Tsuyoshi Kusanagi and Kōichi Satō as Kurashima’s “friends on the road”. Yūko Tanaka as Mrs Kurashima was also convincing, however, she appears only in flashbacks. Even Takeshi Kitano appears in two scenes and gives a solid performance as always. The music score is calm and soothing, but at times forgettable, constituting the only disadvantage of the whole film.

Recommendations

I recommend this film to everyone who would like to spend a quiet evening, see a simple story with a bit of a twist, and have a cathartic experience. I even tend to believe that Dearest outweighs Ken Takakura’s other travel film Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles in terms of screenplay and scenography. If you like Yasuo Furuhata’s other films or the uplifting style of Haruki Murakami novels, Dearest is definitely the movie for you. Watch it and it will leave you in high spirits.

Overall score: 9/10

Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles (2005) [Film Review]

Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles; or, Finding Inner Self

This week’s review will be about a small-budget (for Yimou Zhang standards) drama film that treats about such themes as parental love, reconciliation, and a journey to unravel one's hidden feelings.

Release Info

Directed by: Yimou Zhang Starring: Ken Takakura, Qiu Lin, Jiang Wen, Li Jiamin

Language: Mandarin, Japanese Original Title: Qian li zou dan qi Movie Industry: PRC Runtime: 103 min

Plot

Gouichi Takata (Ken Takakura) is an aged fisherman living in seclusion until one day his daughter-in-law (Shinobu Terajima) tells him that his grown-up son, Kenichi (Kiichi Nakai), is in hospital. Takata travels to Tokyo, but Kenichi refuses to see him. Resigned Mr Takata views a vhs tape from the son’s visit to China and, profoundly influenced by the recording, decides to go there on his own and record a folk opera called “Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles” performed by a local singer Li Jiamin. However, when arriving on a foreign land, Mr Takata not only has to overcome language barriers and cut through a lot of red tape in order to see with Li, but he also has to ride for thousands of miles himself in order to reconcile with his ailing son.

The Essence of Sacrifice

Zhang Yimou's film presents the viewers with a complicated relationship that is such an obvious thing as a bond between father and son. Thankfully, the movie does not strive to have a mystery of any sort, but we are made to wonder throughout the picture what has happened between the two men that distanced them from each other (and who’s to blame?). Well, the truth is rather trivial: it’s all about not being able to show one’s feeling. Mr Takata for the first time finds himself completely hopeless on a foreign land and thus has to rely on the assistance of Jiang Weng, the translator, and Qiu Lin, the tour guide (both characters were named after the actors portraying them who have the same professions in real life). The partners of his journey constitute a paragon of a “normal” and “emotional” person that Mr Takata struggles so hard to become.

However, the film also tells the story of another father and son. Li Jiamin (also, a real-life local opera singer...) has an illegitimate 8-year-old son Yang Yang, whom he has never seen. That’s the cause of Mr Takata’s picturesque journey through China, to bring together a different father and his son. Needless to say, the final outcome is a surprising one, but you’ve got to see it for yourselves. On the way, Takata encounters many peculiar individuals as well as their local traditions and travels through the utmost secluded and scenic natural locations of one of the vastest countries on earth.

Basically, Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles is a transformation-through-journey movie with a brilliant performance from the late Ken Takakura (his penultimate picture in career), tear-jerking story, and wonderful locations in which the tourist rate must have definitely increased after the premiere of this film.

Recommendations

If you like journey films such as Scarecrow (1973), Out of Africa (1985), or Lost in Translation (2003), you’ll surely enjoy Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles. This film is a fine addition to travel subgenre and leaves you uplifted and deeply moved. In general, this is a very peaceful, yet remarkable film.

Overall score: 8/10