Suwingu gâruzu (2004)

Director:

Shinobu Yaguchi

Writers:

Shinobu Yaguchi (written by)
Junko Yaguchi (contributing writer)

Release Date:

11 September 2004 (Japan)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy | Music

Tagline:

Girls meet Jazz!!!

Plot:

A tale of delinquent and lazy school girls. In their efforts to cut remedial summer math class, they end up poisoning and replacing the schools brass band. |

Plot Keywords:

Summer School | Self Motivation | High School Band | Musical Contest | Mushrooming

Awards:

11 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Juri Ueno	...	Tomoko Suzuki
Yûta Hiraoka	...	Takuo Nakamura
Shihori Kanjiya	...	Yoshie Saito
Yuika Motokariya	...	Kaori Sekiguchi
Yukari Toyoshima	...	Naomi Tanaka
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Nagisa Abe	...	Reiko Shimoda
Noriko Eguchi	...	Shop Assistant at Muscial Instruments Shop
Hana Kino	...	Manager at supermarket
Fumiyo Kohinata	...	Yasumi Suzuki
Fumiko Mizuta	...	Yuka Yamamoto
Naomi Nishida	...	Masumi - student at music school
Mutsuko Sakura	...	Suzuki Mie (Tomoko's Grandmother)
Miho Shiraishi	...	Yayoi Itami
Issei Takahashi	...	Band Leader
Masaaki Takarai	...	Kubota-sensei
Naoto Takenaka	...	Tadahiko Ozawa (math teacher)
Yôji Tanaka	...	Manager of Pinball Parlour
Kei Tani	...	Morishita
Eri Watanabe	...	Sanae Suzuki (as Eriko Watanabe)
Asuka Yamaguchi	...	Chika Kubo

Also Known As:

Swing Girls (International: English title)

Runtime:

Japan:105 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

South Korea:12 (re-rating) | South Korea:15 (original rating) | Hong Kong:I | Australia:PG | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Yamagata, Japan

Company:

Altamira Pictures Inc.

Trivia:

Many of the actresses had never played an instrument before. They took intensive music lesson at Yamaha Music School for several months before the shooting began.

Quotes:

Nakamura, Yuta: Where do you think you're going?
Tomoko Suzuki: Bathroom.
Nakamura, Yuta: Liar! You really have to practice. There's only a week left 'til the game!
Tomoko Suzuki: Won't even let us pee!

Soundtrack:

L. O. V. E.

Laugh so hard you'll puke into a tuba

The gags are not always original, but maybe that's what makes this such a hilarious film. Everything is so delightfully predictable that you needn't waste time trying to unravel it. Instead you just sit back and enjoy the presentation.

The humour is largely visual, but it's not corny or slapstick. It's hard to describe--perhaps I'd categorize it with Monty Python's deadpan style: subtle and classy while not being afraid to make fun of itself. And this movie definitely makes fun of itself, like in the scene where the kids are running from a ferocious wild boar which is quite plainly a stuffed prop. Juxtapose the bizarrely inappropriate Louis Armstrong tune "What a Wonderful World" on top, and you have yourself 3 solid minutes of asphyxiating laughter.

Now comedy aside, it's important that you know something about the music. These kids are actually playing their own instruments. The fingering and breathing technique is authentic, right down to the last flubbed note. I think this is worthy of mention because it adds a certain authenticity to the film, much like in SPINAL TAP. Not only are they acting, they're really playing too.

Let me finish by saying that YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIKE SWING MUSIC to enjoy this film. Me, I'm a fan of death metal. But by the end of this film (and for some time thereafter) I sure as heck found myself whistling "Take the 'A' Train". Can't get the bloody tune out of my head now.