is a 2005

film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dial ...

Yukio Mishima , born , was a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor, model, Shintoist, Nationalism, nationalist, and founder of the , an unarmed civilian militia. Mishima is considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century. He was ...

's novel of the same name, directed by

Isao Yukisada is a Japanese film director from Kumamoto. He served as assistant director on Shunji Iwai's ''Love Letter'', ''April Story'', and '' Swallowtail Butterfly''. Filmography Director * ''Open House'' (1998) * (Sunflower) (2000) * ''A Closing Day'' ...

. The cast includes

Satoshi Tsumabuki is a Japanese actor. His breakthrough film was ''Waterboys'' for which he was nominated for the 'Best Actor' award at the Japanese Academy Awards, and won the 'Newcomer of the Year' prize. He is also the bassist and lead singer of the Japanese ...

as Kiyoaki Matsugae,

Yūko Takeuchi was a Japanese actress. She is known for her roles in television series ''Asuka'' (1999), ''Pride'' (2004), ''FlashForward'' (2009), and '' Miss Sherlock'' (2018) as well as films such as '' Ring'' (1998), '' Yomigaeri'' (2003), and ''Dog in a ...

as Satoko Ayakura, and Sosuke Takaoka as Shigekuni Honda. The film was nominated for nine

Japanese Academy Awards The , often called the Japan Academy Prize, the Japan Academy Awards, and the Japanese Academy Awards, is a series of awards given annually since 1978 by the Japan Academy Film Prize Association (日本アカデミー賞協会, ''Nippon Akademii- ...

. "

Be My Last "Be My Last" is Hikaru Utada's 14th Japanese single, released on September 28, 2005. It was used for the 2005 film '' Spring Snow'', an adaptation of the 1966 Yukio Mishima novel of the same name. The cover art was taken in Prague, Czech Repub ...

", the main theme song for this film, was performed by

Hikaru Utada , who is also known by the mononym Utada, is a Japanese-American pop singer, songwriter and producer. By 2010, Utada had become one of the most influential, and best-selling, musical artists in Japan. Born in the United States to Japanese parent ...

. This was her 14th Japanese-language single release.

Plot

Spring Snow starts in 1912, as

Emperor Taishō was the 123rd Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession, and the second ruler of the Empire of Japan from 30 July 1912 until his death in 1926. The Emperor's personal name was . According to Japanese custom, while reigni ...

begins his reign and Japan's upper classes (''

kazoku The was the hereditary peerage of the Empire of Japan, which existed between 1869 and 1947. They succeeded the feudal lords () and court nobles (), but were abolished with the 1947 constitution. Kazoku ( 華族) should not be confused with ' ...

'') are mimicking the tastes and manners of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

aristocrat The aristocracy is historically associated with "hereditary" or "ruling" social class. In many states, the aristocracy included the upper class of people (aristocrats) with hereditary rank and titles. In some, such as ancient Greece, ancient Ro ...

s. Among them are two children, Kiyoaki Matsugae (

) who is the only son of the

Marquess A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...

Matsugae and Satoko Ayakura (

) who is the only daughter of the

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

Ayakura. Even as a child, Satoko had romantic aspirations for her friendship with Kiyoaki. However, her father (

Kenjirō Ishimaru is a Japanese actor and TV narrator. He is best known for his role in Kamen Rider series ''Kamen Rider Den-O'' as the owner of the DenLiner. He has also appeared in multiple competitions of ''Sasuke'' as a competitor and during that time has ...

), wary of the womanizing ways of Kiyoaki's father (

Takaaki Enoki is a Japanese actor and artist from Isa District, Kagoshima. He is known for his role as private detective Mitsuhiko Asami in the ''Asami Mitsuhiko Series''. He attended Musashino Art University but left before graduating and joined the Shiki The ...

), fears for his daughter's involvement. He instructs her tutor, Tadeshina (

Michiyo Ōkusu is a Chinese-born Japanese actress. She has been nominated for four Japanese Academy Awards, and won the 1981 Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role prize for her performance in '' Zigeunerweisen''. She began her career as a ...

), to ensure the girl's heart is not broken. A decade later, as Kiyoaki is finishing

Gakushūin The or Peers School (Gakushūin School Corporation), initially known as Gakushūjo, is a Japanese educational institution in Tokyo, originally established to educate the children of Japan's nobility. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2002)"Gakushū-i ...

high school, the beautiful and eligible Satoko is still stuck on her childhood sweetheart. To avoid her, Kiyoaki playfully considers setting her up with his uptight school friend, Shigekuni Honda (

Sousuke Takaoka is a Japanese former actor, known for his break-out performance in the controversial movie '' Battle Royale''. Career His break-out performance was in the controversial movie '' Battle Royale'', in which he played the pacifistic Hiroki Sugimur ...

), and writes a lurid confession of frequent trips to

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

's entertainment (the theatre of

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...

's ''

Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroads ...

'') quarter, then posts the letter to Satoko before Shigekuni can stop him. That evening, Kiyoaki has second thoughts, and requests the letter be destroyed, as his decadent adventures were fabrications.

External links

Official site
* 2005 films Films based on Japanese novels Films based on works by Yukio Mishima Films directed by Isao Yukisada Films scored by Taro Iwashiro Films set in the Taishō period 2000s Japanese films {{2000s-Japan-film-stub