Paradise Kiss (パラダイス・キス, 2011)

Things have been quiet here on Nishikata Film the past couple of weeks because I have been ill.  When I am under the weather and sofa-bound, I turn to what for me is the movie equivalent of chicken noodle soup: romantic melodramas.  2011 has been so jam-packed for me with work that I have not had the free time to indulge in the guilty pleasures of a cheesy romantic drama.

First on my list was the live action adaptation of Ai Yazawa’s popular manga series Paradise Kiss (パラダイス・キス, 1999-2003).  I am a huge fan of Yazawa and have been suffering from withdrawal since she abruptly stopped writing her Nana (2000 – hopefully ongoing) manga series in 2009 due to illness.  Paradise Kiss is a standalone sequel / spin off of Yazawa’s Neighbourhood Story (1995-8).  The manga tells the story of a high school student called Yukari who gets discovered by some fashion students who want her to model the designs of their studio "Paradise Kiss" at their school's end of year fashion show.  Yukari is torn between her desire to give modelling a go and pleasing her mother, who puts a lot of pressure on her to succeed academically and go on to a good university.

Like Nana, the fashion in the manga is influenced by British punk, Vivienne Westwood, and the Harajuku alternative fashion scene.  The character of George Koizumi, for example, is based on the character of Brian Slade as played by Jonathan Rhys Meyers in the film Velvet Goldmine (Todd Haynes, 1998).  In addition to the avant-guard look of the manga, the central character has a strong coming-of-age storyline.  Yukari (called Caroline by the Paradise Kiss fashionistas) does not yet know who she is as a person or what she really wants to do with her life and she is struggling not only with the intense pressure her mother puts on her, but is also having to deal with confusing feelings of sexual desire for the charismatic fashion designer George Koizumi.  The manga also has a very strong supporting cast of characters with their own subplots – Isabella, a transgender woman and childhood friend of George, and the love triangle between childhood friends Miwako (whose sister was the central character in Neighbourhood Story), Arashi, and Hiroyuki.

The live action feature film Paradise Kiss (パラダイス・キス, 2011) is adapted from the manga by Kenji Bando and directed by Takehiko Shinjo.  Shinjo is known for directing romantic TV dramas and sentimental feature films like Heavenly Forest (ただ、君を愛してる, 2006) and I Give My First Love to You (僕の初恋をキミに捧ぐ, 2009).  To put it plainly: Shinjo has basically given the story a TV-dorama makeover that guts the original story of its edginess.

To begin with, the feature film is woefully miscast.  In the manga, Yukari/Caroline is taller and more sophisticated than most girls her age and really stands out in a crowd.  While she is undoubtedly a beautiful young woman, actress Keiko Kitagawa is of average height.  Ordinarily, height would not be much of an issue except that Yukari’s height and body type are the reasons why Arashi picks her out of the crowd in the opening scene of the manga.  Kitagawa’s average height might not have stood out so much if it weren’t for the fact that Miwako, played by Aya Omasa, towers over her.  Miwako is meant to be a petite “kawaii” girly girl – so tiny in the manga and anime as to be doll-like.  Also miscast is Osamu Mukai who is much too sweet to play the charming but predatory George Koizumi.    

I knew I was going to be deeply disappointed right from the opening credits, which seemed more like an advertisement for nail polish than the engaging, up-tempo montage opening of the anime.  The music throughout is simpering J-pop ballads, which pale in contrast to the funky up-tempo music of the anime adaptation (IE Tomoko Kawase’s “Lonely in Gorgeous” and Franz Ferdinand’s “Do You Want To”).  I am no fashion expert, but the clothes looked more mainstream than avant-garde – instead of hiring Vivienne Westwood to design the costumes (which would have been a lovely tribute to Ai Yazawa), the clothes seemed calculatedly selected with an eye to fashion magazine and store tie-ins. 

Now I know that practically speaking the limitations of time for a feature film meant that much of the subplots had to be excised.  Even the TV anime adaptation with its 12 episodes found itself scrambling to fit everything in towards the end.  However, the substantial cuts to the subplots in the feature film meant that all the supporting cast were rendered one-dimensional.  Isabella’s gender identity only gets passing references – there is no depth to her relationship with George.  Speaking of which, George’s sexuality is much less ambiguous than in the manga/anime.  Even worse, Arashi comes off as a creeper and Miwako as promiscuous.  

What made Yukari special in the original manga was the fact that her story was messy and complicated.  Her friends also led messy and complicated lives.  There were no simple answers to problems and her romantic feelings towards George and Hiro-kun were confused – just as it is in real life.  By over simplifying Yukari’s story, the filmmakers have just turned it into over-polished Disneyesque schlock for teenaged girls.  I don’t mind a fluffy sentimental romance now and then, but Paradise Kissshould have been more Molly Ringwald in Pretty in Pink (John Hughes, 1986) and less Sandra Dee circa late 1950s.  This "happy ending" version of Paradise Kiss may have been enough to please the target audience of the film (IE adolescent girls), but to fans of the original manga it is simply lacking. 

Cast

Keiko Kitagawa as Yukari 'Caroline' Hayasaka

Osamu Mukai as Jōji 'George' Koizumi

Yusuke Yamamoto as Hiroyuki Tokumori            

Shunji Igarashi as Isabella

Kento Kaku as Arashi Nagase                   

Aya Omasa as Miwako Sakurada            

Natsuki Kato as Kaori Asō           

Hitomi Takahashi as Yukino Koizumi      

Shigemitsu Ogi as Joichi Nikaido

Michiko Hada as Yasuko Hayasaka

Available from cdjapan:

Paradise Kiss [Regular Edition]

Paradise Kiss Premium Edition [Limited Edition]

Ten Things That I Know About Takashi Sasano, the One Scene Wonder

Takashi Sasano (笹野高史, b. 1948) is one of my favourite character actors. He’s appeared in so many films and television series that his face is a familiar sight to Japanese audiences. With only the widening of his eyes, Sasano can have an audience erupt with peals of laughter. At the same time, he has a great range and depth in serious roles. Sasano recently jumped onto the radar of Western audiences when the Yōjirō Takita’s Departures (おくりびと, 2008) scooped up the Best Foreign Language Film award at the Oscars in 2009. He plays the role of Shokichi Hirata in that film.

Sasano (right) in Departures

1. He was born on the island of Awaji to a family of sake producers. He was the fourth son in the family, but his parents died when he was still a child.

2. In 1968, while studying Film at Nihon University, Sasano joined the company of Jiyū Gekijyō (Freedom Theatre). He dropped out of university, but he staying with the theatre group until 1982.

3. Sasano appears frequently in the films of Yōji Yamada (山田 洋次). Notable among these many collaborations are many of the Tora-san films, Hidden Blade (2004), Kabei: Our Mother (2008), and About Her Brother (2010).

4. Sasano was awarded Best Supporting Actor at the Japanese Academy Awards in 2007 for playing the role of Tokuhei in Yōji Yamada’s Love and Honour (武士の一分/ Bushi no Ichibun, 2006). His performance in this film also garnered him with a Kinema Junpo Award and a Mainichi Film Concours.

Sanko-Seika spot for senbei crackers

5. He calls himself a “one scene actor” because he never turns down a role, no matter how small. This year alone he appears in three feature films, a made-for-TV movie and three TV series. He also does a lot of television commercials.

Sasano's face imprinted on senbei for a Sanko-Seika campaign

6. At age 42, Sasano finally parted ways with bachelorhood, marrying a woman 17 years his junior. 

7. He has four sons, all of whom work in show business: Shota Sasano (ささの翔太, b.1991), Yuma Sasano (ささの 友間, b. 1993), Kenta Sasano (ささの堅太b. 1995), and Takato Sasano (ささの 貴斗, b. 1997).

8. His profile on the talent agency Gran Papa’s website lists his specialties as playing the trumpet and speaking the Osaka dialect.

9. He has written a memoir called Taiki Bansei in which he pokes fun of his status as a late-bloomer and character actor (never a leading man).  I love how the cover highlights his trademark receding hairline.

10. You can follow him on Twitter under the username sasano61

Selected Filmography

1985 Tora-san’s Island Encounter aka Tora-san: From Shibamata with Love

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Shibamata yori Ai o Komete, Yōji Yamada)

1986 Tora-san's Bluebird Fantasy 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Shiawase no Aoi Tori, Yōji Yamada)

1987 Tora-san Goes North 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Shiretoko Bojo, Yōji Yamada)

1987 Tora-san Plays Daddy 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Torajirō Monogatari, Yōji Yamada)

1988 Tora-san Salad-Day Memorial 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Torajiro Sarada Kinenbi, Yōji Yamada)

1989 Tora-san Goes to Vienna 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Torajirō Kokoro no Tabiji, Yōji Yamada)

1989 Tora-san , My Uncle 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Boku no Ojisan, Yōji Yamada)

1990 Tora-san Takes a Vacation 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Torajirō no Kyūjitsu, Yōji Yamada)

1991 Tora-san Confesses 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Torajirō no Kokuhaku, Yōji Yamada)

1993 Tora-san 's Matchmaker 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Torajiro no Endan,Yōji Yamada)

1995 Tora-san to the Rescue 

(Otoko wa Tsurai yo: Torajiro Kurenai no Hana,Yōji Yamada)

1998 Love Letter (Azuma Morisaki)

1999 The Geisha House (Omocha, Kinji Fukasaku)

2003 Bright Future (Akarui mirai, Kiyoshi Kurosawa)

2004 The Hidden Blade (Kakushi ken oni no tsume, Yōji Yamada)

 

2006 Love and Honour (Bushi no Ichibun, Yōji Yamada)

2008 Kabei: Our Mother (Yōji Yamada)

2008 Departures (Okuribito, Yojiro Takita)

2008 One Million Yen Girl (Hyakuman-en to Nigamushi Onna, Yuki Tanada)

2009 Dear Doctor (Miwa Nishikawa)

2010 About Her Brother (Ototo, Yōji Yamada)

2010 Surely Someday (Shun Oguri)

Related Posts:

Dear Doctor
One Million Yen Girl
About Her Brother

Available from Japan:

Ototo [Regular Edition]

Available from the USA:

© Catherine Munroe Hotes 2010

The Kyu Sakamoto Story (上を向いて歩こう〜坂本九物語〜, 2005)

I wept my way through last half of the biopic Ue wo Muite Arukou: Sakamoto Kyu Monogatari last night. The made-for-TV drama, which originally aired on Tokyo TV back in 2005 to mark the 20th anniversary of Kyu Sakamoto’s death, pushes all the usual buttons from a J-dorama. Even though it was all very predictable – his story has become a legend – hearing the songs and seeing the smiling face of Tatsuya Yamaguchi recreating the cherubic, pock-marked look of the singer lovingly known in Japan as Kyu-chan made the anticipation of waiting for the tragic end a weep-fest for me.

The film starts by giving an idyllic impression of his childhood, in spite of the hardships the family went through during the war. There is an emphasis on his mother as his moral and emotional center. His parents’ divorce is depicted with a dash of humour to lighten the mood, and the family is shown to be fairly forgiving of their often misguided father. The biopic is at its best during the performance scenes and the depiction of Kyu-chan’s relationship with his family. The name ‘Kyu’ means 9 in Japanese and indicates that he is the ninth child in his family. I always found this comical and was pleased to see (if the screenplay is an accurate portrayal of events) that his mother was against this name and preferred to call him Hisashi.

There are several scenes in which Kyu-chan’s parents explain to him why he is famous (so that he doesn’t forget to appreciate his fans and to make sure he keeps his ego in check), but the moment that really encapsulates his success for me is the scene when he is first trying out “Ue o muite aruko.” The lyricist Rokusuke Ei has misgivings about the liberties Kyu-chan is taking with his enunciation, complaining that he doesn’t even sound Japanese. Composer Hachidai Nakamura wins him over by explaining that Kyu-chan is modernizing Japanese pop music by learning from Elvis. It’s a great little scene and perhaps the only one in which Tatsuya Yamaguchi sings. Yamaguchi does also sing professionally, but they were wise to have him lip-synch this film. Kyu-chan had such a unique sound it would have detracted from the film if his voice hadn’t been central to it. To give Yamaguchi credit were it is due, I think he did a rather fine interpretation of Kyu-chan. The look and style of talking are so removed from Yamaguchi’s own star pop-star image that I didn’t recognize him at first. He was brave to take on such an iconic figure… and such iconic pimples!

I was disappointed that they didn’t stretch the budget to shooting overseas, or at least with non-Japanese actors, to show his whirlwind visit to the United States and Europe after the surprise success of Sukiyaki on the North American and European charts. For those of you who don’t know the story, Kyu-chan’s Ue o muite aruko (I walk while looking up) was released to popular success in Japan in 1961. A British music executive heard it and a cover version was released in the UK by Kenny Ball and his Jazzmen under the title Sukiyaki. They thought the song name would be too difficult to remember in English so the executive chose the name of his favourite Japanese food. It became a surprise hit in the States when a Washington DJ picked it up and started playing the original by Kyu-chan. Sukiyaki had the distinction of being the first and only song sung entirely in Japanese to go to number one in the States.

They could have added some really comical, refreshing scenes to the biopic if they had added his stop in America at least. This clip of his on the Steve Allen show gives you a glimpse of what I’m talking about. I also wonder why they only hinted at his work in movies. Surely, there must have been some drama to be found there. Instead, we are given montage after montage over Kyu-chan’s greatest hits. While this was all pleasant to watch it lacked drama and didn’t satisfy my curiosity about the man behind the image and voice. I also thought they would show the final note he wrote to his wife before the plane crashed. I believe his wife wrote about it in her memoirs. Perhaps they thought it would be too much.

To end on a more cheerful note, here’s a little bit of movie trivia, related to Kyu-chan: the very last person he interviewed for television before he died was the legendary cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa (ie. Rashomon). You can watch the show here – sorry no English subtitles, but it’s worth watching! The best is part three when Shintaro Katsu, of the 1960s Zatoichi series, joins the proceedings. Miyagawa also shot some of the Zatoichi films. Some hilarious stuff! Shinataro Katsu’s jokes are made all the funnier watching Miyagawa trying to restrain his laughter.

The DVD of Ue no Muite Aruko: Sakamoto Kyu Monogatari is available at cdjapan:

Ue wo Muite Aruko Kyu Sakamoto Monogatari

TV Drama

Kyu-chan No Uta Dai 2 Shu [Cardboard Sleeve]

© Catherine Munroe Hotes 2008

Nodame Cantabile (のだめカンタービレ)

Nodame Cantabile (のだめカンタービレ) is a popular, award-winning shōjo manga by Tomoko Ninomiya (二ノ宮知子). The series debuted in Kiss magazine in 2001 and the story is on-going with 19 volumes currently in print.

The manga’s popularity has only increased in recent years with Fuji TV producing both a live action drama series and an anime based on the story. The drama ran from October 16 to December 25, 2006 and was revived for a two-episode special set in Europe in January 2008. The animation ran from January 11-June 28, 2007. Nodame Cantabile gets its name through a combination of the nickname of the main character and the musical theme of the story. Nodame, whose full name is Megumi Noda, is an eccentric young student at a music college in Tokyo. She majors in piano and dreams of one day becoming a kindergarten teacher. At every turn, she defies society’s expectations for young women: she gets so caught up in her music and her love of a quirky tv animation that she neglects her apartment and her physical appearance. Her room is filled with clutter and decaying remains of meals, and she has been known to go for days without washing her hair. In Japan, where bathing is an important social ritual both at home and in pubic baths, Nodame’s behaviour seems extraordinary.

The second half of the title, cantabile, is a musical term meaning singable or song-like. This refers not only to the musical theme of the story, but also to Nodame’s unconventional style of piano playing. She finds it difficult to sight-read, and picks up most pieces just by listening to them once. Playing the piano is an emotional experience for Nodame, and she has a tendency to get so wrapped up in the experience that she forgets the composer’s intentions and plays purely for her own enjoyment.


As with most manga, Nodame Cantabile, balances a number different plots and sub-plots, but the central storyline that brings readers back for each new episode is the unlikely romance between Nodame and her fellow student and next door neighbour Shinichi Chiaki. Whereas Nodame comes from a modest working class background in southern Japan, Chiaki was raised in a wealthy family with a professional musician for a father. As a child, he was introduced to the musical capitals of Europe and aspires to become a conductor like his idol, Sebastino Viera.

Nodame and Chiaki’s relationship begins as an unusual friendship. Although Chiaki thinks that Nodame is a nuisance, he somehow can’t help but want to look after her. He nurtures Nodame’s unique talent for piano and, discovering how inept Nodame is at looking after herself, Chiaki finds himself cleaning up her apartment and cooking meals for her. Nodame falls head over heels for Chiaki from the outset, and does nothing to hide her affection. She comes to depend on his friendship and guidance, and dreams both of his future success as a conductor and of one day becoming his wife.

Both the anime and the drama are engaging. What I like best about the story, is that it turns the conventional gender roles on their head. All the characters, no matter what their sex, have set high career goals for themselves, and the romance is incidental to those goals. Nodame’s complete ineptitude as a cook and as a housekeeper makes for some great comedic moments, and allows the male lead to demonstrate his domestic talents. If I have any critique of the two main characters, it would be that I would wish Nodame to be a little less needy, and Chiaki to be more compassionate with others.

I have a high tolerance for cheery melodrama and slapstick comedy (I am a huge fan of Buster Keaton), but no matter how much I loved the unconventional romance and character development of Chiaki and Nodame, my enjoyment of both the anime and the drama was marred by the extreme slapstick and the terrible stereotyping of gays and foreigners.

By extreme slapstick, I mean violence. Having characters engage in moments of extreme rage or violence for comic effect is a trope of manga and anime. In most cases, such as in Nodame Cantabile, it is meant as a visual representation of inner turmoil, not as an actual display of real violence. When Nodame gets upset, her violent outbursts are usually accompanied by a comical shout of ‘gyabo!’ In the anime, these outbursts are tolerable, but in the drama I don’t find the slapstick fights between Nodame and Chiaki very amusing. There is a big problem with unreported domestic violence in Japan, and I don’t think that it is something to joke about.


Slapstick violence does has a long tradition in Japanese drama. The harisen (paper fan) that Nodame’s piano instructor, Etou-sensei uses as a form of discipline comes out of this physical comedy tradition. However, the thin border between comedy and tragedy is ruptured in Nodame Cantabile when it is revealed that Nodame’s fear of the harisen stems from a brutal punishment she received from a piano teacher when she was a child. For me, this just emphasized the inappropriateness of the physical comedy. It is possible to have slapstick comedy without it involving real physical violence.


I also did not enjoy the gay stereotyping of percussionist Okuyama Masumi. While I do like the idea of both men and women having crushes on Chiaki, the rivalry between Masumi-chan and Nodame could have been handled in a more adept way. Masumi-chan’s stereotyping as an over-the-top, afro-headed, hysterical gay character does nothing to aid the cause of gay men in Japan. While a certain kind of feminized man is considered attractive in Japan, openly gay men and women are decades behind North American and European gays and lesbians in terms of acceptance in society.

The third thing that made me uncomfortable about Nodame Cantabile was the portrayal of conductor Franz von Stresemann. Stresemann falls into the disturbing trend of having hentai (perverted) characters for comical effect in manga and anime. Perhaps the most popular such character is Jiraiya in Naruto, whom Naruto refers to has ero-sennin (the perverted hermit). In the Nodame Cantabile anime, it is bad enough that the pervert is not only the only foreign character, but also tolerated because of his status as sensei. In terms of the story, this is done, I suppose, to contrast with Chiaki’s more pure character, but it is truly disturbing to have a male character in a position of power whose perversions are excused rather than punished.


In the live-action drama, the absurdity of the Stresemann character is increased by having a Japanese comedian play the role. Naoto Takenake dons a ridiculous prosthetic nose and long-haired white wig and plays the role with an over-the-top accent that sounds more Yankee than German. If it weren’t for the great chemistry between Juri Ueno as Nodame and Tamaki Hiroshi as Chiaki, the whole series would have been in danger of slipping entirely into the realm of farce. I don’t understand the casting of Takenake as Streseman, as they certainly were able to find foreigners who could speak Japanese for the European special that showed in January of this year. Perhaps they could not find a European actor willing to play a pervert who lusts after Japanese girls half his age. I’m not saying that Western perverts in Japan don’t exist, on the contrary they’re a real problem and it’s not comedy material.

I felt that it was important to highlight some of the reservations that I had about Nodame Cantabile to counterbalance the glowing fan sites out there on the web. The anime and the live-action drama are certainly important to watch. While I may object to the violence and stereotypes, it is important to recognize these trends in Japanese manga and anime and what they say about contemporary Japanese culture and society. To end on a positive note, Nodame Cantabile has done much to make classical musical cool for a young generation of women, and the romantic conclusion of the live-action drama is perhaps the best love scene of 2006.

Nodame Cantabile Vol.1 [Limited Edition]

Animation

Nodame Cantabile DVD Box

Japanese TV Series

Anime Nodame Cantabile Original Soundtrack

Music by Suguru Matsutani

© Catherine Munroe Hotes 2008