Ôdishon (1999)

Director:

Takashi Miike

Writers:

Ryû Murakami (novel)
Daisuke Tengan (screenplay)

Release Date:

3 March 2000 (Japan)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

She always gets a part

Plot:

Widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all...

Plot Keywords:

Audition | Widower | Friend | Death | Japanese

Awards:

3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Ryo Ishibashi	...	Shigeharu Aoyama
Eihi Shiina	...	Asami Yamazaki
Tetsu Sawaki	...	Shigehiko Aoyama
Jun Kunimura	...	Yasuhisa Yoshikawa
Renji Ishibashi	...	Old man in wheelchair
Miyuki Matsuda	...	Ryoko Aoyama
Toshie Negishi	...	Rie
Ren Ôsugi	...	Shimada
Shigeru Saiki	...	Toastmaster
Ken Mitsuishi	...	Director
Yuriko Hiro'oka	...	Michiyo Yanagida
Fumiyo Kohinata	...	TV station presenter
Misato Nakamura	...	Misuzu Takagi
Yuuto Arima	...	Shigehiko as a child
Ayaka Izumi	...	Asami as a child

Also Known As:

Audition (International: English title) (UK) (USA)
Oodishon (Japan) (alternative transliteration)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence/torture and sexuality.

Runtime:

115 min | USA:113 min (R-rated version)

Country:

South Korea | Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo | Dolby SR

Certification:

Sweden:15 | Chile:14 | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Singapore:R21 (cut) | Portugal:M/16 (orginal rating) | Portugal:M/18 (DVD rating) | Belgium:KNT | Argentina:18 | Australia:MA (cable rating) | Australia:R (original rating) | Canada:R | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-18 | France:-16 | Germany:18 | Hong Kong:III | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM14 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Spain:18 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Zurich) | Switzerland:18 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:18 (canton of Vaud) | UK:18 | USA:R (cut) | USA:Unrated

Company:

AFDF

Trivia:

When the film was screened at the Rotterdam Film Festival 2000 it had a record number of walkouts. At the Swiss premiere someone passed out and needed emergency room attention.

Goofs:

Continuity: During their weekend getaway, Asami clearly removes all of her clothing then lies in bed and covers with a sheet. She then raises the sheet to expose the wounds on her thigh. The white panties can clearly be seen despite the fact that she just removed them.

Quotes:

Asami Yamazaki: This wire can cut through meat and bone easily.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Man in the Bag Speaks: Ren Osugi (2009) (V)

How to not pick up girls

This is a Takashi Miike film, so you know it's chock full of weirdness and ugliness, and yet still beautiful in some ways. Now it's gone out of print in the US and another import version (Chinese or Japanese) is available in NTSC format, and it's fine if you don't mind somewhat literal subtitles, obviously written by someone that does not speak English as a first language, but that was relatively minor. On to the film: A widower is told by his young son that he's looking old, and a friend of his talks him into staging a fake audition for the purpose of meeting a suitable young bride. Aoyama can sure pick 'em, he is smitten with Asami before he ever sees her in person and seems to fall in love when he actually talks to her, and they go out a few times to dinner and such. There's something not quite right about Asami though, nobody seems to know anything about her and her stories don't check out. Does that stop Aoyama though? No, it doesn't. In further poking around into her background he finds some quite disturbing information that may or may not be connected with her. And poor little Asami just sits around in her room waiting for the phone to ring with a duffel bag with dubious contents sitting nearby. Oh my. This is sort of a journey into David Lynch territory, but generally his films aren't quite this grisly. I think the thing I like the most about Japanese films is the portrayal of young ladies that seem meek and mild and are monsters at heart, and this one is a fine example. Well worth your time to seek out and watch, 8 out of 10 stars.