[KineJapan] Bohemian Rhapsody in Japan

[Eija Niskanen]

Queen also had this decorative glitzy dress style and stage show when many
other bands were doing jeans style. Glitzy Japanese bands have always been
favorites.
Eija

la 29. jouluk. 2018 klo 6.55 Matt Treyvaud (matt at treyvaud.net) kirjoitti:

> I think a lot of it is the sheer and enduring popularity of Freddie
> Mercury in Japan. He’s an extremely beloved figure here, I’d say ranking no
> lower than John Lennon; there are references to him in comics, cartoons,
> etc... I don’t think that nostalgia for the golden age of Queen was more
> relevant here than anywhere else. The screening I attended was full of
> young-looking, many of whom (to judge from overheard conversations
> afterwards) didn’t know much about Queen beforehand, but they all knew and
> loved Freddie.
>
> I’d say this also explains the "satisfaction" thing: People wanted to have
> a good time watching the spectacular story of Freddie Mercury, with
> colorful period detail (costumes!) and a bunch of great songs (if you like
> Queen) they mostly knew. And that's exactly what they got.
>
> --Matt
>
> John Junkerman wrote:
>
> I haven't seen the film yet, anticipating feeling the same way Aaron did,
> but I was talking about this at a bonenkai last night. A friend pointed out
> that Queen's initial popularity was in Japan and then it spread throughout
> the world (I haven't verified this), and many of the audience are
> middle-aged women who became fans during that time. So nostalgia may be a
> factor. Also the 応援上映 participatory screenings are quite an event, it
> seems. There are cine-complexes that are running it on all screens, and the
> release of other films has been delayed as a result. I'm planning to take
> in one of the oen joei, just out of sociological interest.
>
> On Sat, Dec 29, 2018 at 11:12 AM Gerow Aaron <aaron.gerow at yale.edu> wrote:
>
>> On our last day in Portland, the family and I went to see Bohemian
>> Rhapsody in the theater. I am not really a Queen fan; in fact my main
>> interest was trying to think why this was such a huge hit in Japan. As of
>> today, it’s made $55 million at the Japanese BO (with predictions it will
>> go over $70 million), with Japan being the film’s third biggest non-US
>> market (the South Korean BO numbers are higher, but it opened there
>> earlier).
>>
>> I did not like the film that much, for its mythification of Freddie and
>> predictable direction, but I wonder why it has not only made a bunch at the
>> Japanese BO, but also came in number 1 in Pia’s satisfaction survey for all
>> of 2018.
>>
>> My inclination is to look at both its melodrama and its depiction of
>> family—and the promise of mass unity—but I was wondering what others think,
>> or what others might have written about this.
>>
>>
>> Aaron Gerow
>> Professor
>> Film and Media Studies Program/East Asian Languages and Literatures
>> Director of Graduate Studies, Film and Media Studies
>> Yale University
>> 143 Elm Street, Room 210
>> PO Box 208324
>> New Haven, CT 06520-8324
>> USA
>> Phone: 1-203-432-7082
>> Fax: 1-203-432-6729
>> e-mail: aaron.gerow at yale.edu
>> website: www.aarongerow.com
>>
>>
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>>
>
>
> --
> John Junkerman
> jtj53213 at gmail.com
> 2-18-6 Ehara-cho, Nakano
> Tokyo 165-0023
>
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-- 
Eija Niskanen
+358-50-355 3189
+81-80-3558-1645
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