is a 2010
Japanese film
The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world; as of 2021, it was the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. In 2011 Japan produced 411 feature films that ea ...
directed and written by
Hitoshi Matsumoto
, commonly known as , is a Japanese film director and one of Japan's most popular comedians and TV hosts. He is one half of the comedy duo Downtown alongside Masatoshi Hamada. Like Hamada, Matsumoto was born and raised in Amagasaki, Hyōgo Prefect ...
.
This movie was exhibited at the 64th
Locarno International Film Festival
The Locarno Film Festival is an annual film festival, held every August in Locarno, Switzerland. Founded in 1946, the festival screens films in various competitive and non-competitive sections, including feature-length narrative, documentary, ...
.
Plot
In a forest in feudal Japan, a man with a price on his head and a little girl are on the run. He is Kanjuro Nomi, a samurai who wears an empty scabbard because he has lost his sword and with it his honour, while she is his daughter Tae. Surviving several assassination attempts by bounty hunters, he is captured by a rival clan and sentenced to The Thirty Days. This practice has arisen because the little crown prince has not laughed since his mother died in the epidemic that also carried off Nomi's wife. Condemned criminals are allowed 30 days to win their freedom if they can amuse the boy. If not, they are executed, which for a samurai like Nomi is by seppuku.
Nomi devises various stunts which do not amuse anybody and, as the days tick by, his daughter and his guards try to improve his performances. She has the idea of allowing the public into the palace to cheer him on, and she also sneaks into the depressed little prince's bedroom to try to gain his sympathy. But Nomi's efforts are just not funny, and with every failure he loses more dignity. The noble warrior is reduced to a sad clown who, though everybody wants him to succeed, manages to disappoint them every time. After 30 futile days, he has to perform the ritual public disembowelling.
On the way to execution, he slipped a note to a supposedly blind monk. This man follows Tae as she roams disconsolate through the country and reads it to her. In his last testament, Nomi defies death and exhorts her to embrace life in a world that will go on.
Cast
*Kanjuro Nomi: Takaaki Nomi
*Tae:
Sea Kumada
*Lord:
Jun Kunimura
is a Japanese actor who has performed in Japan, Hollywood and Hong Kong. He won Best Supporting Actor and the Popular Star Award at the 37th Blue Dragon Film Awards for his performance in the South Korean horror film ''The Wailing (film), The Wa ...
*Lord's aide:
Masato Ibu
Masato (written: , , , , , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include:
*Masato (kickboxer) (born 1979), Japanese former welterweight kickboxer, won K-1 WORLD MAX kickboxing tournament in 2003, 2008
*Masato A ...
*Koranosuke:
Itsuji Itao
, is a Japanese comedian and actor. He is a member of the comedy duo 130R and former cast member of one of Downtown's previous shows. He usually appears in their batsu games.
Filmography (actor)
Movies
*2001 ''Desert Moon'' ... Interviewer
* ...
*Heikichi:
Tokio Emoto
is a Japanese actor who is represented by the talent agency Knockout.
Biography
Emoto's father is Akira Emoto, his mother is Kazue Tsunogae, and his brother is Tasuku Emoto. He is left-handed.
In 2003, Emoto had his acting debut in the film, '' ...
*O'Ryu, musician assassin: Ryo
*Gori-Gori, chiropractor assassin: Zennosuke Fukkin
*Pakyun, two-pistols assassin:
Rolly
*Monk: Kazuo Takehara
/ref>
References
External links
*
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2010 films
2010s Japanese films
{{2010s-Japan-film-stub