Yoi Ko to Asobou

1994 0h 43m JA

🤯

9.0

MASTERPIECE

★9.0TMDB · 1

Horror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Five junior high school students in the city enjoy stealing as a game to pass the time. One day, a mysterious masked man suddenly appears in front of them and attacks them.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Hirozumi Sato
Bingo
Shingo Takano
Harada
Issey Takahashi
Namio
Masahiro Unno
Honya
Kengo Hattori
Kujira
Yuji Nakamura
Store manager
Hiroaki Tokoro
Masked man

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Hideyuki Hirayama
Writers: Satoko Okudera
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 43-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

32 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Hideyuki Hirayama, shot by Akiko Ashizawa. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Shigeru Umebayashi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Shuichi Kakesu shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Hirozumi Sato and Shingo Takano and Issey Takahashi carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0400952 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Hideyuki Hirayama directs. Akiko Ashizawa behind the camera. Shigeru Umebayashi scores. Shuichi Kakesu cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 43-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
232 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Directed by Hideyuki Hirayama, shot by Akiko Ashizawa. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Shigeru Umebayashi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Shuichi Kakesu shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Hirozumi Sato and Shingo Takano and Issey Takahashi carry the top of the cast.
8IMDB entry: tt0400952 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 1 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.