Perfect Education 5: Amazing Story

2004 1h 43m JA

😐

5.3

MID

★5.3TMDB · 10

DramaThrillerRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Because of the desolate landscape, Kobayashi chose snow-covered Hokkaido (the most northern island of Japan) as the setting for Amazing Story, a light-erotic drama about a lonely man, Kenji, who kidnaps the woman of his dreams. The woman is Harumi, a hairdresser in the deserted town where Kenji has just arrived. It's never really busy in her business. Harumi's husband is a gambling addict and spends all Harumi's money. Maybe that's why Harumi doesn't try very hard to escape when Kenji kidnaps her. His concern about her and his boundless worship probably help, too. Something strange and beautiful blossoms between the kidnapper and his victim, but can this be the basis of a long and happy encounter?

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Kazuki Kitamura
Kenji
Keiko Oginome
Harumi Imai
Naoto Takenaka
Ikuo
Yasufumi Hayashi
Used car dealer
Jiro Sato

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Masahiro Kobayashi
Writers: Masahiro Kobayashi, Michiko Matsuda
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 22 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Perfect Education Series" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

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 Masahiro Kobayashi, shot by Kenji Takama. 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 Junpei Sakuma. 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 Tomoko Hiruta 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

Kazuki Kitamura and Keiko Oginome and Naoto Takenaka carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0366664 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Masahiro Kobayashi directs. Kenji Takama behind the camera. Junpei Sakuma scores. Tomoko Hiruta cuts. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 22 years ago.
2Part of the "Perfect Education Series" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Directed by Masahiro Kobayashi, shot by Kenji Takama. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Junpei Sakuma. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Tomoko Hiruta shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Kazuki Kitamura and Keiko Oginome and Naoto Takenaka carry the top of the cast.
8IMDB entry: tt0366664 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 10 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.