Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival 2008

ADRIFT IN TOKYO Touching, funny, outrageous yet grounded in humanity, Adrift in Tokyo is the ultimate road movie in which the two protagonists just…stroll their way across the landscape of the metropolis of Tokyo. It begins with a shambolic and wild-haired loser named Takemura, who suddenly finds himself at the mercy of an uninvited houseguest, the tough debt collector Fukuhara. With Takemura unable to pay back the money, Fukuhara decides to give him an ultimatum: take a walk through Tokyo with him, and he will receive more than enough cash to pay back the debt. Mistrustful and skeptical, Takemura has no choice but follow this absurd plan. From this basic premise comes richness in characterization and a natural drollness that is intensely sublime. Much of the credit goes to the easy chemistry between the two leads. Japanese heartthrob Joe Odagiri [ Azumi (Reel Asian Closing Night, 2003), Blood and Bones ) portrays Takemura as an unwitting hero—a man down on his luck with little self-confidence and no goals in life. Conversely, Fukuhara, sensationally played by Tomokazu Miura ( Always: Sunset on Third Street, The Taste of Tea ), is seen as a good-hearted thug in an unfortunate predicament. Their continuous bantering evolves into a real relationship, giving way to unexpected depth in their personalities. All the while, director Miki keeps the pace lively with unexpected side gags, witty repartees and the reality of crazy Tokyo. Filled with everyone from girls who dress up in costumes and punked-out electric rockers to a bogus makeshift family, the city offers all a chance to be themselves. It is the ever-changing Tokyo itself that acts as the third character here. From the bustle and neon-glitter of places like Shinjuku to quiet leafy neighbourhoods of the suburbs, it is a film that lets us explore the city while the characters basically act as commentators. Even when the focus is shifted to the misadventures of the co-workers of Fukuhara’s wife, this only serves to show us a different side of life in Tokyo. In the end, the sterling humour and the genuine warmth is singularly the creation of Satoshi Miki, whose screenplay and direction make it possible for such a basic concept to become something richer than most films you’ll see this year. -Heather Keung Satoshi Miki was born on August 9, 1961, in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. He started out as a writer for hit TV variety shows before directing stage plays, then further expanding into TV dramas and films. His first films In the Pool (2005) and Turtles and Surprisingly Fast (2005) were consecutively released theatrically in the same year. Miki has earned a growing following for his comedies, as he becomes known for his urbane sense of humour in which seemingly unnecessary episodes and dialogues are developed and interwoven into an indispensable part of the story. Adrift in Tokyo (2007) is his fifth feature film. Canadian distributor: Evokative Films Please note: allow extra time to arrive at venues due to Santa Claus Parade related to road closures.

THE BLESSING BELL Laid off with the unexpected closing of a local factory, a laborer opts to take a walk rather then join his co-workers in protest. Hands in his pockets, wearing an aimless gaze and never uttering a word, his walk takes him to various places and people, including a ghost played by Seijun Suzuki. When he can go no further, he turns around and walks home. Having established himself with energetic screwball crime capers like Postman Blues and Unlucky Monkey , SABU’s The Blessing Bell is a markedly distinct work. The bumbling of Yakuza, the lamentations of murderers and the Rube-Goldberg machine plotting that SABU is so elegant at constructing persist from previous works, but what differs is how SABU approaches these episodes visually. For the most part, SABU has the camera capture the action on a proscenium. Like the unfurling of a tapestry the protagonist walks from the left to right across a series of shots, only to pass through them all again on his way home. The effect is an extremely absorbing cinematic representation of Zen philosophy. In the pivotal role of the wanderer is veteran Japanese actor Susumu Terajima. A familiar face from both Takeshi Miike and Kitano, but rarely assuming anything more then a supporting role, SABU takes advantage of Terajima’s wonderful face and its seemingly perpetual grimace for his patient protagonist. It is a deadpan, but moving performance of exquisite subtlety. The Blessing Bell , winner of the Netpac Award at the Berlin International Film Festival (2003) and the Grand Jury Prize at Cinemanila International Film Festival, is a wonderfully accomplished film that manages to inspire a contagious sense of optimism despite its brushes with life’s tragedies and suffering. - Eric Cazdyn and Peter Kuplowsky SABU was born in 1964 as Hiroyuki Tanaka, He began his film career as an actor. His performance in Katsuhiro Otomo’s World Apartment Horror (1991) won him an award at the Yokohama Film Festival 1991, and he went on to appear in several other films, working under Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Hideo Nakata and Takeshi Miike. In 1996, he debuted as both a writer and director with D.A.N.G.A.N. Runner . Celebrated for his inventive style and humorous storytelling, SABU quickly became a highly regarded director in both Japan and overseas, particularly in Europe. SPONSOR: University of Toronto Munk Centre for International Studies at Trinity College, Asian Institute COMMUNITY PARTNERS: Gendai Gallery, Canada Japan Society of Toronto