is a 2005

2005 in film

- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2005...

 feature film

Feature film

In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...

 by Japanese writer/director Satoshi Miki.

Synopsis

Suzume Katagura (Juri Ueno) is an ordinary housewife whose spouse is sent overseas on business. He keeps regular contact by phone, but is more concerned with the welfare of his pet turtle, Taro. She dreams of being able to escape from her mundane existence one day. On one occasion, she accidentally floods her apartment, causing her to send in a plumber. Her best friend, Kujaku Ogitani (Yû Aoi) leads a much more interesting life than her and still wants more, namely a husband in Paris with a house with a view of the Eiffel Tower. Later on, while she is on some steep steps, a cart filled with apples accidentally unloads, prompting her to duck, and notice a tiny flyer advertising for spies wanted. After trying (and failing) to make her life more interesting, she replies to the advert and goes into a ramshackle home to meet the spy masters, unemployed couple Shizuo Kugitani (Ryô Iwamatsu) and Etsuko Kugitani (Eri Fuse), who work for an organization that is never referred to by name. They instruct her that her job is to remain completely boring and ordinary. She has this re-iterated to her when she buys a pair of sunglasses to make herself feel more like a spy. At one point, Suzume meets Kujaku in line for a chance to spin a wheel and win marvelous prizes (including a trip to France, hence Kujaku's excitement). While they miss out on a trip to France, they do win a fishing trip, which Suzume is more excited about than Kujaku. Suzume explains that she can never say "no" to Kujaku, because, when they were young, Kujaku cut off the power in the village so that Suzume could see her childhood sweetheart, Taro, in his pajamas, electrocuting herself in the process. The fishing trip is cut short when a body is discovered in the water. An unnamed group takes notice of the fact that the corpse did not belong to a Japanese, and was probably a spy, which starts an investigation to look for more spies. Meanwhile, Suzume meets Taro (Person, not turtle) only to discover, to her horror, that he is bald. While he meets her again the next day, his son comes looking for him, takes him away, and he is never seen again. Eventually, the spies are contacted by the government of their group, who instruct them to return to their country. Suzume is told to say goodbye to all of her friends and family, as she may never see them again. However, Kujaku is missing, and the mysterious group appear outside her door. As Suzume prepares to throw her old life away (symbolized by throwing Taro the Turtle into the river), she sees Taro (the person)'s son drowning in the river, and as an instinct reaction, rescues him. Witnesses report their statement to the news, and soon artist's impressions of her face appears all over the news. When the order is given for the spies to return, the mysterious group are already patrolling the streets, making escape impossible. To make sure her fellow spies can return safely, Suzume cuts the power in the same fashion that Kujaku did when they were young. When the spies all finally meet at the rendezvous point, Shizou tells Suzume that the government say it would be best for her to remain at home. A old lady on a bench (previously referred to as a "bench hag") reveals herself to be the leader of the operation, and opens a trap door beneath her bench. Suzume waves goodbye to everyone as they walk inside. Suzume then explains that Kujaku got her wish of living in France with a view of the Eiffel Tower, as she has been arrested for espionage in a prison overlooking the tower. The film ends with Suzume walking into the distance to rescue her friend.

Cast

• Juri Ueno
  Juri Ueno
  is a Japanese actress from Kakogawa, Hyogo, Japan. She was one of six actors to receive the "Newcomer of the Year" prize at the Japanese Academy Awards in 2005 for her role in Swing Girls....
  
   as Suzume Katakura
• Yû Aoi
  Yû Aoi
  is a Japanese actress and model. She made her film debut as Shiori Tsuda in Shunji Iwai's 2001 film All About Lily Chou-Chou...
  
   as Kujaku Ogitani
• Jun Kaname
  Jun Kaname
  is a Japanese actor. He was born in Mitoyo, Kagawa. He made his drama debut as an actor in 2001 in the Tokusatsu Series "Kamen Rider Agito". He appears not only in TV dramas but also in movies, commercial messages, variety TV programs, plays, and music videos.-TV:...
  
   as Kato
• Masatô Ibu
  Masato Ibu
  ' is a Japanese actor and voice actor.-Films:*Maison Ikkoku *Empire of the Sun as Sgt. Nagata*Sukeban Deka *Dr. Akagi *Taboo *Godzilla vs...
  
   as Nakanishi
• Yutaka Matsushige
  Yutaka Matsushige
  is a Japanese actor. He won the award for best supporting actor at the 31st Yokohama Film Festival for Dear Doctor.-Selected filmography:-External links:...
  
   as Ramen Chef
• Ryô Iwamatsu as Shizuo Kugitani
• Eri Fuse as Etsuko Kugitani

Reception

Emma Slawinski of Eye for Film panned the film when she wrote "(the film) is a miscellany of characters, scenes and events that studiously avoids a plot", and "There are moments of wit and the odd thoughtful comment, but they turn into dead ends; the result is disappointingly ordinary". Conversely, Kevin Gilvear of DVD Times praised the director and the film in comparison to Satoshi Miki's debut film In the Pool by saying "(the film) retains the kind of skewed psychological underpinnings and energy that made the former so enjoyable" and that "...thanks to a sprightly and diverse cast playing a bunch of locals with unlikely talents that we can come away with a huge smile on our face".

Release

The film was first released in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 July 2, 2005. It was released in South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

 on October 19, 2006. It screened in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 at the Raindance Film Festival

Raindance Film Festival

Raindance is an independent film festival and film school that operates from various cities including: London, New York, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Budapest, Berlin and Brussels...

 on October 28, 2008, and in Taiwan

Taiwan

Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

 on November 7, 2008.

External links

• Film website
• Kame wa igai to hayaku oyogu at the Internet Movie Database
  Internet Movie Database
  Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
  
  
• Turtles Are Surprisingly Fast Swimmers at Nippon Cinema