Amarufi: Megami no hôshû (2009)

A young Japanese woman goes missing in Rome during the Christmas season.

Director:

Hiroshi Nishitani

Writer:

Yûichi Shinbo (novel)

Stars:

Yûji Oda, Yûki Amami, Erika Toda

Cast

Credited cast:
Yûji Oda	...	Kosaku Kuroda
Yûki Amami	...	Saeko Yagami
Erika Toda	...	Kanae Adachi
Kôichi Satô	...	Masaki Fujii
Nene Ohtsuka	...	Yoshimi Haba
Atsushi Itô	...	Mikiyasu Taniki
Akira Onodera	...	Kiyofumi Kikuhara
Mitsuru Hirata	...	Wataru Kawagoe
Shirô Sano	...	Michio Nishino
Ayane Ômori	...	Madoka Yagami
Sarah Brightman	...	Herself
Masaharu Fukuyama	...	Shogo Saeki
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Fausto Bellone	...	Concert's guest
Ugo De Cesare
Luis Fernandez-Gil	...	Roberto

Storyline

A G-8 summit is set for Rome the day after Christmas; the Italian and Japanese governments will announce an aid package for the Balkans. Kuroda arrives from Tokyo to improve security at the embassy, making waves with his direct manner. A Japanese tourist who's a single mother reports that her young daughter has been kidnapped. Posing as the woman's husband, Kuroda takes the lead with the kidnappers, who want money and no cops. However, the law requires that Kuroda notify local authorities, who blunder a bit. Various exchanges go awry; then the kidnappers send the mother and Kuroda to the Amalfi coast on what appears to be a goose chase. Why the delay? What's going on?

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

18 July 2009 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Amalfi

Filming Locations:

Amalfi Coast, Amalfi, Salerno, Campania, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

M-CUBE, Cine Bazar, Dentsu

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Spin-off Gaikoukan Kuroda Kousaku: Gaikoukan Kuroda Kosaku (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Time To Say Goodbye (Con te partirò)"
Composed by Francesco Sartori
Lyrics by Lucio Quarantotto
Enlgish lyrics by Frank Peterson
Performed by Sarah Brightman

User Reviews

A so-so thriller for tourists

A Japanese girl goes missing on a holiday in Rome, and her mother teams up with a government security expert to find her. Thrillers without twists are in minority nowadays, so the twists are expected. The twists in this movie did not really surprise me, but maybe it's just me.

Japanese thrillers usually contain too much melodrama; Amalfi is no exception. However, when a thriller like Suspect X manages to integrate the melodrama organically into the plot, Amalfi does not do such a good job.

The movie is set in Italy, and at times focuses too much on the settings. Incidentally, much of the action occurs in the well-visited tourist spots, and it makes the movie look like a travel agency brochure, "Top 10 places in Italy to visit", adapted for Japan, accompanied by "Time to say goodbye" sung by non-Italian Sarah Brightman. Too cheesy.

On the up side, however, the mystery keeps you interested for a while, and the acting is more or less convincing. Watchable for those interested in Japanese movies (like myself), but no more than that.