Sad Vacation

2007 2h 16m JA

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 11

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Abandoned by his mother, Kenji scrapes out a meager existence doing odd jobs, including driving bar hostesses and their customers home. Besides this, he cares for the sister of an incarcerated friend and a young illegal immigrant. Eventually, his life reaches a turning point.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Tadanobu Asano
Kenji Shiraishi
Eri Ishida
Chiyoko Mamiya
Aoi Miyazaki
Kozue Tamura
Yuka Itaya
Saeko Shiina
Katsuo Nakamura
Shigeki Mamiya
Kengo Kora
Yusuke Mamiya
Joe Odagiri
Goto
Kosuke Toyohara
Kawashima

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Shinji Aoyama
Writers: Shinji Aoyama
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

ERA

Did you know

Released 19 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

CRAFT

Did you know

Part of the "Kitakyushu Saga" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Shinji Aoyama, shot by Masaki Tamura. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Tadanobu Asano and Eri Ishida and Aoi Miyazaki carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0915749 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 11 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Shinji Aoyama directs. Masaki Tamura behind the camera. Hiroyuki Nagashima scores. Yūji Ōshige cuts. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 19 years ago.
2Part of the "Kitakyushu Saga" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
3Directed by Shinji Aoyama, shot by Masaki Tamura. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Hiroyuki Nagashima. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Yūji Ōshige shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Tadanobu Asano and Eri Ishida and Aoi Miyazaki carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0915749 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 11 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.