Nobody Knows (2004)

In a small Tokyo apartment, twelve-year-old Akira must care for his younger siblings after their mother leaves them and shows no sign of returning.

Director:

Hirokazu Koreeda

Writer:

Hirokazu Koreeda

Stars:

Yûya Yagira, Ayu Kitaura, Hiei Kimura

13 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Yûya Yagira	...	Akira Fukushima
Ayu Kitaura	...	Kyoko
Hiei Kimura	...	Shigeru
Momoko Shimizu	...	Yuki
Hanae Kan	...	Saki
You	...	Keiko, the mother
Kazuyoshi Kushida	...	Yoshinaga, The Landlord
Yukiko Okamoto	...	Eriko Yoshinaga
Sei Hiraizumi	...	Mini-market Manager
Ryô Kase	...	Mini-market Employee
Takako Tate	...	Mini-market teller
Yûichi Kimura	...	Sugihara (Taxi Driver)
Ken'ichi Endô	...	Pachinko Parlor Employee
Susumu Terajima	...	Baseball coach
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Shinichi Hashizawa

Storyline

In Tokyo, the reckless single mother Keiko moves to a small apartment with her twelve years old son Akira Fukushima and his siblings Shigeru and Yuki. Kyoko, another sibling arrives later by train. The children have different fathers and do not have schooling, but they have a happy life with their mother. When Keiko finds a new boyfriend, she leaves the children alone, giving some money to Akira and assigning him to take care of his siblings. When the money runs out, Akira manages to find means to survive with the youngsters without power supply, gas or water at home, and with the landlord asking for the rent.

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Plot Keywords:

child abandonment | enjo kosai | boy | child living alone | neglect | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements and some sexual references

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to the director Hirokazu Koreeda, though Nobody Knows (2004) was inspired by the true story of the Sugamo child abandonment case, it is not a factual recounting, and only the settings and the ending of the story are based on the true story. Also, the film's version of the story was far less grisly than the actual event upon which the movie is based on.

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Goofs

When the mother returns home late one evening with sushi, she gets a glass of water from her daughter and drinks it nearly empty. After a brief intermediate shot, she is holding the glass again but now it's more than half full.

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Quotes

Pachinko Parlor Employee: Shit. I'm 10 yen short. Lend me 10 yen.
Akira Fukushima: Ten yen?
Pachinko Parlor Employee: No big deal, huh? Lend me. What the hell is with that big wallet? What the hell is this?
Akira Fukushima: It's a hand-me-down from Mom.
Pachinko Parlor Employee: From who?
Akira Fukushima: From Mom.
Pachinko Parlor Employee: You moved, right? Roomy, huh? Any pubic hair comin', yet?
Akira Fukushima: No...
Pachinko Parlor Employee: Bullshit. I got mine in fifth grade.
Akira Fukushima: No way.
[...]

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Connections

Remade as Nobody Knows

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Soundtracks

Houseki
Sung by Takako Tate

User Reviews

a film with immense humanity

It has been a while since I saw a film with this much humanity. That is, until I saw acclaimed Japanese director Hirokazu Koreeda's latest, Nobody Knows, about a quartet of siblings left to fend for themselves.

It's heartbreaking, just thinking about some of these random moments subtly displayed on screen. The look on an adolescent girl's face when her mom paints her nails. A little boy making silly faces in the mirror. A little girl's scribbling of stick people on a gas bill that has been months overdue... I can go on.

I wish I can put into words, or convey in some sort of way, the flowing of rampant emotions experienced when I saw these images: about how much it hit so close to home, how much it reminded me of my own family. But I can't. I guess it simply cannot be articulated in such a concise, simplified manner.

You'll just have to see it for yourself.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan] Official site [Singapore] (English)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

21 October 2004 (Hong Kong)

Also Known As:

Nobody Knows

Filming Locations:

Haneda International Airport, Ota-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$32,393, 6 February 2005

Gross USA:

$684,118

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,288,093

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bandai Visual Company, Cine Qua Non Films, Engine Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

141 min 141 min (Buenos Aires Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1