As Australia’s 17th Japanese Film Festival is begins its last city tour in Melbourne, the capital of the southern state of Victoria, Eden Law (Fukushima-ken ALT 2010-2011, current JETAA NSW committee member) reviews some of what is on offer. Stay tune for more reviews!
Everyone’s feeling somewhat uncomfortable now.
Okay, so what would you think if I told you that Maruyama, the main character in this film, spends most of the film trying to touch tongue to his own peen? A certain expectation will be set, wouldn’t it? Like, there wouldn’t be much else to expect from the plot except whether that lollypop gets licked. So it’s pleasantly surprising to find that it’s actually less like a string of dick jokes (unlike this review), and more of an endearingly quirky film.
Our hero with a quest, Maruyama, is a hormonal 14-year-old with a rather active imagination, frequently dreaming up imagined lives for his family and residents of his apartment complex. We’re taken through his daydreams, which range from randy fantasies filled with bouncy ladies, to colourful scenarios that get sillier and funnier as he imagines various people being either wacky fruit-themed superheroes, scissor-wielding gangsters or aliens. But Maruyama decides that he needs a hobby to distract him from such childish preoccupations, one that will bring focus and maturity – like attempting to orally do one’s own dong. However, he later befriends a dorky, uncharismatic single father, Shimoi (played with surprising ability by Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, a member of the ageless Japanese boy band SMAP), who encourages him to embrace his fantasies. Real life can be more strange than any fantasy, and a bit of strangeness is nothing to be ashamed of, but celebrated.
Maruyama’s world is undeniably ridiculous and entertaining (and sometimes sticky) as the imagination of a teen could be. And despite Maruyama’s overarching ambition to boldly try what many men have tried before (and failed, and the few that do make a career out of it), a sweet, innocent quality exists, thanks to director Kankuro Kudo’s affectionate treatment of him and all the eccentric and flawed characters that populate the neighbourhood. It’s quite an accomplishment that “Maruyama” manages to build a more substantial film on such an unlikely basis, and it results in a film that’s like a funnier combination of a Wes Andersen and Michel Gondry movie. Hiraoka Takuma, being close to the age of the character Maruyama that he plays, embodies the innocence and determined Maruyama well, shining with youthful enthusiasm, embarrassment and determination as he takes his character from zero to hero. The whole ensemble cast is perfect in their various roles, obviously having a lot of fun, from Kenji Endo’s geriatric grandfather with a surprising ability, and Maki Sakai as Maruyama’s Korean drama-obsessed mother.
It’s hard for any film to sustain the initial novelty of the first half right to the end, and “Maruyama” suffers the same problem as it gets a bit flaccid towards the end. However, the film still climaxes in a satisfactory way that, while lacking in the same vigor and energy of the start, manages to tie up all the plot threads and situations. While “Maruyama’s” length is a bit too long for comfort, overall, it charms with its humor and originality – not bad for a film that started off with auto-fellatio.
Maruyama the Middle Schooler (Chuugakusei Maruyama) by Kankuro Kudo, released in Japan April 21 2013, starring Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, Hiraoka Takuma, Kenji Endo, Yang Ik-June, Maki Sakai, Toru Nakamura, Nanami Nabemoto, Yuiko Kariya
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