Kamikaze Girls (2004)
"Shimotsuma monogatari" (original title)

Momoko, a strange and seemingly emotionless girl obsessed with 18th century France, befriends a Yanki biker and the two experience the ups and downs of their unusual lives in a rural Japanese town.

Director:

Tetsuya Nakashima

Writers:

Nobara Takemoto (novel), Tetsuya Nakashima (screenplay)

Stars:

Kyôko Fukada, Anna Tsuchiya, Hiroyuki Miyasako

15 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kyôko Fukada	...	Momoko Ryugasaki
Anna Tsuchiya	...	Ichigo Shirayuri
Hiroyuki Miyasako	...	Momoko's Father
Sadao Abe	...	Ryuji 'the Unicorn' / Doctor
Eiko Koike	...	Akimi
Shin Yazawa	...	Miko
Hirotarô Honda	...	Yakuza Boss
Kirin Kiki	...	Momoko's Grandmother
YosiYosi Arakawa	...	Grocery Store Manager
Katsuhisa Namase	...	Pachinko Parlor Manager
Ryôko Shinohara	...	Momoko's Mother
Yoshinori Okada	...	Baby, 'The Stars Shine Bright' Owner
Kanako Irie
Haruo Mizuno	...	Himself
Yûichi Kimura	...	Yakuza

Storyline

Momoko is an ordinary girl, living an ordinary life. Ordinary, that is, if you define ordinary as wearing elaborate Lolita dresses from the Rococo period in 18th Century France. A complete fish out of water in her rural and sleepy Japanese town, where everyone buys their clothes (and everything else) at the same store and no one understands her, Momoko's life is one of sugared sweets and frilly treats. Desperate to make some money to pay for her expensive indulgence, Momoko tries selling bootleg Ver*ace and Uni*ersal Studios clothes left over from her Dad's yakuza (gangster) days. However, when punk girl and self-styled 'Yanki' Ichiko comes calling, her days as 'ordinary' are most certainly numbered... Friendship brings these two unlikely girls together.

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Plot Keywords:

surrealism | scooter | pachinko | outcast | motorcycle gang | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Official Sites:

CIPA [fr] Official Site [jp]

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

29 May 2004 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Kamikaze Girls

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$42,813 (Hong Kong) (10 June 2005)

Gross:

$101,447 (Hong Kong) (1 July 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Amuse Pictures, Hakuhodo DY Media Partners, Hori Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

At the part when Ichigo and Momoko are having lunch together, Momoko is holding a pink book. The title reads "How to be a Lolita" in Japanese.

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Quotes

Momoko Ryugasaki: Humans are cowards in the face of happiness. It takes courage to hold on to happiness.

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the film, Momoko and Ichigo pose together in a photo booth.

User Reviews

Shimotsuma Fairy Tale - A coming of age tale

This a well-done girls' coming-of-age tale, like a Japanese 21st-century Alice in Wonderland - one Lewis Carroll would probably have liked. And I presume whoever gave the Kamikaze Girls title to the American edition would have titled the Alice work Kamikaze Alice. The underlying themes are independent thinking, the value of friendship, and the need to pursue one's creative impulses while critically evaluating surrounding people and opportunities.

Most the adult figures in the film are - in one way or another - failures. Though seen in an exaggerated, humorous, or empathetic light, they serve as guideposts to the two girls who come to realize that salvation (or "sallvation" as Ichigo misspells it for emphasis) lies not in following the crowd, not in seeking leaders' approval, but in following one's own dreams - as much as they can be realized in this limited, 3-dimensional, mortal world.

Early in the film, I feared it was headed to be too sweet, especially with the main characters being Momoko (Peaches) and Ichigo (Strawberries). But this sweetness is quickly counterbalanced with the challenges and adventures they face.

This is a fun and very unique film, good for people of all ages. In ways, it's set in a society that seems closer to the U.S. of the 1950's

• around the "beat" and the James Dean eras, when youth could be wild

without police being called, and yet neighborhoods could leave front doors unlocked without fear and kids could even hitch-hike - an age of greater homogeneity when America had some cultural unity and - with exception of its black-white scar - was not afraid of itself.

I obtained this film, by the way, in VCD format (not the best, but adequate), I believe, from HKFlix. I couldn't find it anywhere in DVD format.