Himizu (film)

Himizu (ヒミズ) is 2011 Japanese drama film based on a manga of the same name by Minoru Furuya[2] and directed by Sion Sono.[2][3] The word himizu is the Japanese name for a species of mole.

Himizu
Film poster advertising this film in Japan
Directed bySion Sono
Produced byHaruo Umekawa, Masashi Yamazaki
Written byMinoru Furuya
Sion Sono
StarringShōta Sometani, Fumi Nikaidō
CinematographySohei Tanikawa
Production
company
Gaga
Kodansha
Studio Three Co., Ltd.
Distributed byGaga
Release date
  • 5 September 2011 (2011-09-05) (Venice)
  • 14 January 2012 (2012-01-14) (Japan)
[1]
Running time
130 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese

The film competed in competition at the 68th Venice International Film Festival in September.[4] At the festival, Shōta Sometani and Fumi Nikaidō received the Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actor and Actress for their work in the film.[5]

Cast

Production

Development

The director Sion Sono had already written the film's script when the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami struck Japan on 11 March 2011.[6] After this disaster, he decided to rewrite the script to adapt the film to this disaster.[6]

Casting

The lead stars of the film were officially announced on 10 June 2011.[7] The lead actor for the film is Shōta Sometani, who plays the role of Sumida, a 15-year-old who suffers from the violence that his father inflicted onto him.[6] Actress Fumi Nikaidō his co-star, plays Chazawa, a rich girl who is Sumida's classmate.[7]

Additional cast members of the film are Yōsuke Kubozuka, Yuriko Yoshitaka, Anne Suzuki and singer Takahiro Nishijima.[8] Actress Yoshitaka previously starred in the 2006 film Noriko's Dinner Table,[8] which was also directed by Sion Sono.[9] Nishijima is from the music group AAA,[8] and also previously starred in Sion Sono's 2009 award-winning film Love Exposure.[10]

Filming

Most of the filming took place at a special set in Ibaraki Prefecture during May 2011.[7]

Reception

Critical reception

Himizu currently holds a 94% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[11] The film was a New York Times Critics' Pick, with Miriam Bale praising its sound design and noting Sono "uses sound, a low, grumbling noise like an earthquake, to convey [dystopian Japan]. He also gives the film a harrowing cacophony and a sense of trauma with sound effects, including subtle echoes." Deborah Young of The Hollywood Reporter criticized the film as being "fraught with brutal violence and needless repetition that draws out its two-hour running time" and added that the film "is still not an easy film to like".[6] However, the reviewer praised the ending of the film, which she describes as "achingly real" and "extraordinarily intense and effective".[6] She also praised the film's young leads Shōta Sometani and Fumi Nikaidō, who she said "grow in stature as the film progresses".[6]

Accolades
Year Award Category Result Recipient
2011 68th Venice International Film Festival Marcello Mastroianni Award Won Shōta Sometani and Fumi Nikaidō[5]
gollark: This has geopolitical implications.
gollark: This means that sugar is actually a fairly dangerous weapon.
gollark: You don't need efficiency if you have cereal bars.
gollark: It would make most sense to just do the thought-duelly thing and have an accomplice surprise them in a way which isn't known in advance to you.
gollark: Wrong.

References
  1. "Venezia 68: Programme" (PDF). Venice. Retrieved 28 August 2011.
  2. "ヒミズ on eiga.com". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  3. Smith, Ian Hayden (2012). International Film Guide 2012. p. 158. ISBN 978-1908215017.
  4. "Venezia 68: International competition of feature films". Venice. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 28 August 2011.
  5. "Official Awards of the 68th Venice Film Festival". Le Biennale di Venezia. Archived from the original on 24 September 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2011.
  6. "Himizu: Venice Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 8 September 2011.
  7. 染谷将太＆二階堂ふみ、映画「ヒミズ」で園子温監督に挑む！. eiga.com (in Japanese). 10 June 2011. Retrieved 8 September 2011.
  8. 窪塚洋介＆鈴木杏、「ヒミズ」で園子温監督作に初出演. eiga.com (in Japanese). 2 September 2011. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  9. "紀子の食卓 on eiga.com". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  10. "愛のむきだし on eiga.com". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  11. "Himizu (2013)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
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