WIT Life #100: ダーリンは外国人
Anecdote Article, Film, Japan Trends, Translating/Interpreting, Uncategorized, WIT Life 
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Last night I went to see the US premiere of ダーリンは外国人 or My Darling is a Foreigner. This film is based on the manga series with the same title by Saori Oguri. I was introduced to this work by a Japanese friend shortly after it came out in 2002, and I devoured the volumes that were available at the time. It depicted the day to day life of this international couple and the bumps that they encountered along the road of their relationship. They eventually went on to have a child together, and since the first book went on sale this popular series has sold 3 million copies.
Tony is the name of Saori’s husband and he hails from the United States. He is a 言語オタク (gengo otaku) or language geek, always having questions about a particular Japanese phrase or wondering how to say something. Evidently she took some liberties in portraying his character, as I heard from a friend who knew the real Tony back in the day. He shared that Tony frequented Kichioji and wore a fedora, and was quite different from his fictional counterpart.
In the movie he is played by Jonathan Sherr, an American tarento who is part of the comedy group “Tokyo Comedy Store.” Saori is played by the young actress Mao Inoue of the drama/movie “Hana yori Dango” fame. Other familiar faces fill out supporting roles such as those of Saori’s family.
Though it only clocked in at 100 minutes, this movie dragged slightly. As in many Japanese movies, the camera lingered a bit too long in certain parts, and of course there was the requisite running through the streets shot.
However, overall it was an enjoyable flick providing laughs as well as memories of days in Japan (Early in the movie, the scene of Tony asking a Japanese man for directions is classic and something many of us have likely experienced). Go see it for the nostalgia if nothing else!
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