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Best known in the United States for bizarre and unsettling horror films like PULSE and CURE, Kiyoshi Kurosawa ventures away from that category with TOKYO SONATA. Of course, Kurosawa is incapable of directing a straightforward picture, and TOKYO SONATA is no exception. Retaining the same masterful control over mood and atmosphere that he has displayed throughout his career, Kurosawa infuses this family drama with an underlying tension that permeates the film even during its most humorous moments.
The story concerns a Japanese businessman, husband, and father of two, who unexpectedly loses his job. Unable to break the news to his devoted wife, he dresses up every morning and pretends to go to work, instead wasting the days away with a former classmate who is also unemployed. Although they aren`t aware of his contradictory behaviour, his family begins to disobey him nonetheless. His teenage son enlists in the Army in order to fight for the United States, while his adolescent son goes behind his back to take piano lessons. The longer his charade goes on, the less control he has as patriarch, creating an even deeper divide between him and his family.
With TOKYO SONATA, Kurosawa has produced one of his most original and accomplished works. Equal parts social commentary and situational comedy, Kurosawa`s film also feels like a thriller, thanks to the exceptionally atmospheric work from cinematographer Akiko Ashizawa and composer Kazumasa Hashimoto.
Die Sasakis sind eine ganz gewöhnliche Familie in Tokyo. Vater Ryuhei widmet sich mit Leib und Seele seiner Arbeit als Businessman. Seine Frau Megumi hat ihre Arbeit aufgegeben, um den Haushalt zu führen und die beiden Kinder zu betreuen. Der ältere der Buben ist Takashi. Er besucht das College und macht der Mutter das Leben nicht einfach. Der jüngere, Kenji, ist ein sensibler Junge und steckt noch in der Primarschule. Eines schönen Tages verliert der Vater seine Anstellung. Er erzählt seinen Söhnen und der Frau nichts davon, packt weiterhin jeden Morgen seine Aktentasche und macht sich auf den Weg zu seiner nunmehr fiktiven Arbeit. Allmählich tauchen aber Brüche in der vermeintlichen Normalität der Familie Sasaki auf, und wir werden Zeugen, wie jedes Mitglied der Familie zumindest vorübergehend durchdreht.
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