The Professor and His Beloved Equation (2006)

The story of a single mother housekeeper and a mathematics professor, who has a brain damage.

Director:

Takashi Koizumi

Writers:

Takashi Koizumi (screenplay), Yôko Ogawa (novel)

Stars:

Akira Terao, Eri Fukatsu, Takanari Saito

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Akira Terao	...	Professor
Eri Fukatsu	...	Kyoko
Takanari Saito	...	Root - young
Hidetaka Yoshioka	...	Root
Ruriko Asaoka	...	Professor's sister-in-law
Hisashi Igawa	...	Housekeeper Agent
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ryôya Abe
Shô Abe
Takayasu Andô
Yuni Aritomi
Kin Asano
Shôgo Baba
Yasumi Emori
Hiroshi Ito
Yûsuke Kakinuma

Storyline

The story of a single mother housekeeper and a mathematics professor, who has a brain damage.

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Plot Keywords:

japanese woman | almond eyes | memory loss | forgetfulness | memory | 

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Genres:

Drama | Family | Romance

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User Reviews

Cute little story

English title "The Professor and His Beloved Equation"

On the first day of class a young teacher enters an unruly room and begins his first lecture. To gain the students' attention he relates the story of what probably led him into a life of mathematics.

Told via flashbacks, the young teacher goes back to a time, probably 20 years earlier, when his mother was hired to look after a professor who suffered brain damage in an auto accident. The brain damage didn't harm the personality of the man but limited his short- term memory to 80 minutes. The accident occurred 10 years earlier, in about 1975, up to that point the professor has a clear memory of events.

The movie is tale of the relationship that follows, a simple and straightforward tale. The story is well paced, the mood upbeat. There's quite a bit of baseball in it, a good plot device through which the young boy becomes a friend of the professor and earns a lifelong interest in mathematics.

A central event in the movie is a no-hitter by Yutaka Enatsu of the Hanshin Tigers on August 8, 1973. He pitched 11 innings and, according to the movie, hit a walk-off home run to win the game. (The no-hitter and length of the game have been verified on Japanese baseball sites.) In the movie, the professor asks the boy what Enatsu's ERA is, the boy replies that "he has retired." In real life, Enatse retired in 1984 which fits with the estimated time span in the movie. That's the kind of attention to detail you'll find in the movie.

A good way to pass a few hours - especially when you are trapped in an airliner for 12 hours. (It's better than that, really.) The story is so entertaining that by the time you learn the beloved equation, you'd already forgotten it was coming.

Details

Official Sites:

Asmic Ace Entertainment

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

21 January 2006 (Japan)

Also Known As:

The Professor and His Beloved Equation

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,299,771

Company Credits

Production Co:

Asmik Ace Entertainment, Hakuhodo DY Media Partners, Imagica

Technical Specs

Color:

Color