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Japanese Film - Adrift in Tokyo (2007)
Jan. 7th, 2010 11:26 pmI randomly picked a new movie to watch today called "Adrift in Tokyo," and I found myself surprised. The actor, Joe Odagiri, who played Ginko in "Mushi-shi" which I had watched yesterday, was also starring in the movie I had picked today. Coincidence? Maybe... maybe not. In this movie, he plays a lazy college student named Fumiya who's knee-deep in debt. One night, he's visited by a loan shark named Fukuhara, who threatens him to pay up. Realizing that the lazy college kid has no way to do this, Fukuhara makes him a strange deal... to accompany him on a walking tour around Tokyo. With no choice, Fumiya accepts the offer, and so begins their adventure.
It's hard to talk about this movie without giving away all the good stuff. Basically, this is a movie about two guys who travel around and encounter strange and often silly situations. Over the course of the movie, they come to learn about the other person's past, and eventually form a bond with each other. The main draw of the movie comes from learning about the two characters, and seeing what new thing will pop up in front of them. Their journey is very aimless, but it's filled with many lighthearted moments. In spite of this, the movie doesn't feel too saccharine, and it even sort of makes fun of itself (or at least Fumiya) for being touching. This is a movie that tries to help us see the joys of both the big and little things in life.
Also, like I've seen in many Japanese movies, there's a taste of loneliness within the characters. Abandoned as a child by his family, Fumiya has lived his life without knowing certain things such as what it's like going to a zoo or riding a roller coaster. Fukuhara, on the other hand, suffers from marital problems with his wife, which leaves him longing for better times. Like I said before though, the movie is lighthearted, and it never dwells upon these things too heavily... and it also sort of resolves these issues.
I have to say that out of all the movies I've watched so far, "Adrift in Tokyo" is my favorite one. The laid-back, traveling style is something I really enjoyed. As a child, it was my dream to just wander around and have random adventures, and watching this movie felt like I was living a guilty pleasure of mine. It reminds me a lot of another movie called "Kikujiro," which I also really liked. They're both quirky movies, but I think "Adrift in Tokyo" has a more balanced pace to it. It never strays too far from the end goal of the film.
Today...
We started to furnish our new house with portraits and paintings, and it's starting to feel more like home than just another house now. On the opposite end, my old house feels cold and barren without the things that used to adorn its walls.
It's hard to talk about this movie without giving away all the good stuff. Basically, this is a movie about two guys who travel around and encounter strange and often silly situations. Over the course of the movie, they come to learn about the other person's past, and eventually form a bond with each other. The main draw of the movie comes from learning about the two characters, and seeing what new thing will pop up in front of them. Their journey is very aimless, but it's filled with many lighthearted moments. In spite of this, the movie doesn't feel too saccharine, and it even sort of makes fun of itself (or at least Fumiya) for being touching. This is a movie that tries to help us see the joys of both the big and little things in life.
Also, like I've seen in many Japanese movies, there's a taste of loneliness within the characters. Abandoned as a child by his family, Fumiya has lived his life without knowing certain things such as what it's like going to a zoo or riding a roller coaster. Fukuhara, on the other hand, suffers from marital problems with his wife, which leaves him longing for better times. Like I said before though, the movie is lighthearted, and it never dwells upon these things too heavily... and it also sort of resolves these issues.
I have to say that out of all the movies I've watched so far, "Adrift in Tokyo" is my favorite one. The laid-back, traveling style is something I really enjoyed. As a child, it was my dream to just wander around and have random adventures, and watching this movie felt like I was living a guilty pleasure of mine. It reminds me a lot of another movie called "Kikujiro," which I also really liked. They're both quirky movies, but I think "Adrift in Tokyo" has a more balanced pace to it. It never strays too far from the end goal of the film.
Today...
We started to furnish our new house with portraits and paintings, and it's starting to feel more like home than just another house now. On the opposite end, my old house feels cold and barren without the things that used to adorn its walls.
