Marusa no onna (1987)

Director:

Juzo Itami

Writer:

Juzo Itami (writer)

Release Date:

June 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime

Tagline:

He has a Yen for her, but he won't tell her where it's hidden... [USA Theatrical]

Plot:

Ryoko Itakura is a government tax agent who has just landed a big promotion. Her first assignment is to catch wheeler-dealer Hideki Gondo...

Plot Keywords:

Tax Evasion | Japan | Female Nudity | Yakuza | Tax Collector

Awards:

22 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Nobuko Miyamoto	...	Ryôko Itakura
Tsutomu Yamazaki	...	Hideki Gondô
Masahiko Tsugawa	...	Hanamura
Yasuo Daichi	...	Ijûin
Kinzoh Sakura	...	Kaneko (as Kinzô Sakura)
Hajime Asô	...	Himeda
Kiriko Shimizu	...	Kazue Kenmochi
Kazuyo Matsui	...	Kumi Torikai
Hideo Murota	...	Jûkichi Ishii
Machiko Watanabe	...	Kangofu
Shôtarô Takeuchi	...	Rihei Hakamada
Mitsuhiko Kiyohisa	...	Gondô no Untenshu
Akira Shioji	...	Fudôsan'ya
Kôichi Ueda	...	Ninagawa no Fukushin
Yuusuke Nagumo	...	Ninagawa no Kobun (as Yûsuke Nagumo)

Also Known As:

A Taxing Woman (USA)

Runtime:

127 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | Sweden:11

Company:

New Century Producers

Quotes:

Hideki Gondo: To save money, you don't spend it. It's as simple as that. You give maybe $100 at a funeral, $200 at a wedding. That's not good. A million is nothing if you spend it. But even $100 is yours if you save it. Say you're trying to fill a glass with dripping water. When it's half-full, you're thirsty, so you drink. But that's stupid. Wait until it's full. But still don't drink. Wait 'til it brims over and lick it. That way you save the water and drink.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Marusa no onna wo marusa suru (1987) (V)

Tax Collectors Can Be Fun

Who would think a two-hour film (and subtitled for non-Japanese speaking viewers) about tax collectors could be interesting? This was, although nothing extraordinary.....just pretty entertaining with an interesting lead character and strange soundtrack.

I found Nobuko Miyamoro fascinating as the tax collector with all the freckles and the will to get the job done, no matter what it takes. It was interesting to discover how much the Japanese were taxed (at least when this movie was made) and what lengths they will go to cheat on their taxes!

The hot-tempered gangster had some funny lines, some naked breasts were seen here several times to keep things spiced up for the male audience. Generally, this was fun to watch. The constant jazz-type beat on the main song was cool for quite a while but got tiresome toward the end.