JAPANESE STORY Rating: (out of 5 stars) Director: Sue Brooks Producer: Sue Maslin Writer: Alison Tilson Director of Photography: Ian Baker Cast: Toni Collette, Gotaro Tsunashima Visit the IMDB page for full cast and crew

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Review by: Warren Curry
12/29/03

Dropping in just before the end of the year is Japanese Story, a strong candidate for worst film of 2003. Just how bad is this movie? So bad that I leaped to my feet and raced out of the screening room immediately as the end credits began to roll. You see, I would've been embarrassed beyond belief if forced to face another person who had shared this implausibly uncomfortable experience with me. If I had taken a friend, it would've marked the last time we ever spoke; if my parents had accompanied me, I would ask them to disown me. But somehow this movie has been showered with awards in its native Australia.

The biggest crime in all of this is that prior to seeing Japanese Story, I considered Toni Collette (The Hours, The Sixth Sense) to be one of my favorite actresses working today. I can't get a complete grasp on the long-term ramifications this film will have on my feelings for Collette just yet, but a healing process is certainly in order. And no, I can't even pardon Collette's performance as being the lone bright spot in this mess -- she is equally as grating as the other horrid elements of this excruciating movie.

Collette plays a geologist named Sandy who is asked by her professional associates to accompany a meek Japanese businessman, Hiromitsu (Gotaro Tsunashima), on a tour of Australian mines in the rugged outback. The plan is to get Hiromitsu to sink money into Sandy's company, so despite the mandate the woman has to be on her best behavior, the cultural differences between the two traveling companions predictably leads to tension between them. What evolves from a situation where a man and woman can barely speak the same language and don't much care for one another's company? Romance, of course.

But this romance is short-lived due to an unexpected tragedy. My production notes state that, "The filmmakers request that media refrain from disclosing the plot twist within Japanese Story." I wish I could also refrain from disclosing how atrocious this film is, but that would defeat much of the purpose of this review.

There is nothing good about this film. Sue Brooks' direction is meandering, and the post-tragedy third act crosses far into the world of a soap opera (something Australia is relatively famous for). The strange dramatic timing of the tragedy helps add to the woefully haphazard nature of the narrative. A screenwriter is credited on the film, but I would completely believe it if I discovered later on that this movie was shot on the fly without the aid of a script.

The casting of the tiny, impish Tsunashima opposite Collette simply makes for a bizarre pairing. Sandy is the stereotypical rough-around-the-edges Australian, but of course she emerges from this experience enlightened and with a new found sensitivity. Tsunashima's already soft facial features appear as if they have been excessively enhanced by a too obvious makeup job. The character Hiromitsu is a lifeless void, which helps make the love scene between he and Sandy one of the worst ever filmed. Lots of melodramatic score and silly close-ups of the character's enraptured faces…this scene almost falls into the "so bad it's good" category. Almost.

The rest of Japanese Story, as you might be able to guess, falls into the "so bad it's bad" category.

(An IDP Distribution release. Opens in Los Angeles on December 31, 2003. Expands to more cities at later dates.)