Release Date

August, 2nd, 2008

Running Time

138 min

Genre

Drama , Feature

Color

Color

Screening Format

35mm

Screen Size

American Vista (1:1.85)

Sound Processing

Dolby SR

[ Directed by ]

• SAKAMOTO Junji

[ Produced by ]

• NAKAZAWA Toshiaki
• TOHYA Nobuyuki
• SHIII Yukiko

[ Cast ]

• EGUCHI Yosuke ── NANBU Hiroyuki
• MIYAZAKI Aoi ── OTOWA Keiko
• TSUMABUKI Satoshi ── YODA Hiroaki

[ Staff ]

• SAKAMOTO Junji ── Screenplay
• KASAMATSU Norimichi ── Director of Photography
• HIRUTA Tomoko ── Editor
• IWASHIRO Taro ── Music
• HARADA Mitsuo ── Production Design

[ Production Company ]

Children of the Dark Film Partners, SEDIC INTERNATIONAL, GENEON ENTERTAINMENT, Amuse

[ Distributor (Japan) ]

GO CINEMA

[ Production Studio ]

SEDIC International

[ Story ]

A social drama directed by Sakamoto Junji, a globally acclaimed director for his Tokarev, which was officially invited to the Toronto International Film Festival, and Aegis as well as others. Based on Yan Sogil's novel of the same title, Sakamoto realistically portrays the current status of human trafficking and child prostitution. The film was officially invited to the 43rd Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Children are forced into prostitution in a room in Bangkok, Thailand. Nanbu Hiroyuki (Eguchi Yosuke), a journalist stationed at the Bangkok branch of the Nippon Newspaper, is asked by the Head Office in Tokyo to look into a story about the trade of a child's organ. In the process, he learns that the organs are harvested from children alive. Meanwhile, Otowa Keiko (Miyazaki Aoi) starts working at a social welfare center in Bangkok to discover her inner self. She also hears about the organ trade, and Otowa and Nanbu return to Japan to visit a family of a trading company employee who has been planning an organ transplant. The family who want to save their child refuse to cooperate. On return to Thailand, Nanbu manages to take photographs of the crucial moment of the organ trade with the help of a cameraman, Yoda Hiroaki (Tsumabuki Satoshi). Before long, a group of Mafia burst into a meeting organized by the social welfare center spraying bullets at the attendants. Nanbu saves a child but discovers of the abyss of his own mind and despairs.

[ Official Site ]

http://www.shochikufilms.com/film/detail.php?product_code=699

[ Premiere ]

World Premiere: Karlovy Vary International Film Festival

[ Film Festivals, Awards ]

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival

[ Contact (International) ]

SHOCHIKU CO., LTD.
International Sales & Licensing
13F, Togeki Bldg., 4-1-1 Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-8422
tel: +81-3-5550-1623
fax: +81-3-5550-1654
E-mail: ibd@shochiku.co.jp
http://www.shochikufilms.com