Dear KineJapanners,<br><br>We have another screening opportunity at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan on Monday, Oct. 3, followed by a Q&A with star Masanobu Ando.<br><br>The FCCJ is a private club, so you must reserve through Karen Severns if you’d like to attend the screening: <a href="mailto:kjs30@gol.com">kjs30@gol.com</a><br>
<br><a href="http://www.fccj.or.jp/node/6882">http://www.fccj.or.jp/node/6882</a><br><br>SNEAK PREVIEW SCREENING <br>Followed by a Q&A session with star Masanobu Ando and producer/cowriter Masatoshi Yamaguchi <br><br>
MONDAY, OCTOBER 3, 7 pm 20th floor<br><br>SMUGGLER (Sumagura―Omaeno Miraiwo Hakobe)<br>Japan, 2011 115 minutes In Japanese/Chinese with English subtitles<br><br>Directed by: Katsuhito Ishii<br>Written by: Katsuhito Ishii, Masatoshi Yamaguchi and Kensuke Yamamoto, based on <br>
the graphic novel by Shohei Manabe<br>Producers: Hideaki Endo, Masatoshi Yamaguchi, Kazuto Takida, Akira Yamamoto<br>Cast: Satoshi Tsumabuki, Masatoshi Nagase, Yasuko Matsuyuki, Hikari <br> Mitsushima, Masanobu Ando, Masahiro Takashima, Fumiyo Kohinata, Ren Osugi, Shota Matsuda<br>
<br>Film courtesy of Warner Bros. Warning: Extreme violence<br><br>The Movie Committee completes its trilogy of genre film screening events with this wacky, shocking comedy by acclaimed cult director Katsuhito Ishii (“Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl,” “A Taste of Tea”), starring a Who’s Who of hot young actors, headlined by Satoshi Tsumabuki (“Villain”), Hikari Mitsushima (“Sawako Decides”) and Masanobu Ando (“Sukiyaki Western Django,” “The Butcher, the Chef and the Swordsman”). Produced by Warner Bros. — signaling its designs on global distribution — “Smuggler” is a nonstop thrill ride that manages to pay homage to Yusaku Matsuda, Quentin Tarantino, “Beat” Takeshi Kitano, Bruce Lee and Sundance hit “Sunshine Cleaning” — and to include unexpectedly tender moments involving gay gangsters and tasty takoyaki — en route to its happy ending.<br>
<br>After his dreams of becoming an actor go nowhere, self-proclaimed slacker Kinuta (Tsumabuki) buries himself in pachinko until he is neck-deep in debt and forced to get a loan from a goth Lolita banker (Matsuyuki of “Hula Girl” fame). To pay her off, he is recruited as a smuggler – an underground mover of everything from illegal goods to dead bodies. Hauling sensitive items in the dead of night with silent tough guy Joe (Nagase of “Mystery Train”) and his chatty sidekick, Kinuta enters Japan’s underworld the easy way. Until one night, their cargo — a murdered yakuza boss — triggers the rage of psychotic, unibrowed Kawashima (a terrifying Takashima). Their lives are further imperiled when the boss’ wisecracking widow (Mitsushima) forces them to transport, Hannibal Lecter–style, her husband’s killer, a peroxided Chinese assassin (Ando) known as Vertebrae for his spinal tattoo and bone-crunching martial arts prowess. When Kinuta allows Vertebrae to escape, Kawashima sharpens his torture implements and Kinuta will have to give the performance of a lifetime to survive.<br>
<br>Please join us for this special sneak peek at “Smuggler,” opening at theaters across Japan on October 22, following its September 16 world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival. <br><br><br clear="all"><br>-- <br>Eija Niskanen<br>
080-3479-8475<br>Kichijoji Honcho 4-12-6 <br>Musashino-shi<br>Tokyo 180-0004<br>