Ikari (2016)

A grisly unsolved murder links three seemingly unrelated stories in three different Japanese cities.

Director:

Sang-il Lee

Writers:

Shûichi Yoshida (based on the novel by), Sang-il Lee (screenplay)

Stars:

Ken Watanabe, Mirai Moriyama, Aoi Miyazaki

4 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ken Watanabe	...	Yohei Maki
Mirai Moriyama	...	Shingo Tanaka
Aoi Miyazaki	...	Aiko Maki
Satoshi Tsumabuki	...	Yuma Fujita
Gô Ayano	...	Naoto Onishi
Suzu Hirose	...	Izumi Komiya
Ken'ichi Matsuyama	...	Tetsuya Tashoro
Hideko Hara	...	Takako Fujita (Yuma's mother)
Chizuru Ikewaki	...	Asuka
Mitsuki Takahata	...	Kaoru
Takahiro Miura	...	Sosuke Kitami
Pierre Taki	...	Kunihisa Nanjo
Takara Sakumoto	...	Tatsuya Chinen
Masato Hyûgaji	...	Yuma's gay friend #1
Kenji Ebisawa	...	Yuma's gay friend #2

Storyline

A grisly unsolved murder links three seemingly unrelated stories in three different Japanese cities.

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Plot Keywords:

murderer | tokyo japan | okinawa | okinawa japan | fugitive | 

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Taglines:

Did you kill someone?

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan] Official Site [Japan]

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese English

Release Date:

17 September 2016 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Anger

Company Credits

Production Co:

Chunichi Shimbun,Chûôkôron Shinsha,Dentsu

Technical Specs

Runtime:

142 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Aiko Maki: I called the police

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Soundtracks

Connection
Performed by 'banvox'
License by WARNER MUSIC JAPAN INC.

User Reviews

Riveting and disturbing Japanese mystery/drama

This Japanese mystery/drama is made up of three concurrent stories centring on enigmatic strangers who enter the orbits of trusting individuals from different Japanese cities, while a grim double-murder investigation plays out in the background. In Chiba, an ex sex worker forms a relationship with a taciturn young man whom her father is wary of, a confident gay man begins a relationship with a quiet and mysterious man he met in a seedy joint in downtown Tokyo and a young lady newly arrived in Okinawa befriends a drifter who lives alone on a nearby island.

I must say that I found this film to be pretty riveting from start to finish. The detective strand of the story takes a bit of a back-seat while the three main plot strands propel forwards. But the whodunit aspect remains extremely compelling and I was gripped to the end. The various stories all play off feelings of trust/mistrust in regard to how the trio of strangers are perceived and treated by the people they come into contact with. The acting by the ensemble cast is very strong throughout and the different dramas all have a strong dramatic punch to them. The film is pleasingly unpredictable and it really is difficult working out how it is going to play out, which is of course a big bonus for a mystery movie, but while the ending was satisfying it might have been slightly less than the journey getting there. This is a fairly minor complaint as this as a whole is a very strong bit of Japanese cinema. Be warned though, there is one extremely harrowing scene mid-way through the picture which was hell of a difficult to watch and very emotionally tough indeed. A couple of folks at the screening I attended walked out at this point in actual fact, I won't say any more as its best to go into this with no prior knowledge as it is a key scene. So, it is a film which is definitely tough in places. It is a very impressive bit of work though, with strong dramatics underpinned by a compelling mystery framework and it is well worth seeing if you can take films with disturbing content.