Kikujiro (DVD) (US Version) DVD Region 1

Over the last two decades, Kitano Takeshi has emerged as one of the most representative figures of Japanese cinema, be it as an actor or as a director. His distinct style and aesthetic, characterized by unflinching violence, bizarre surrealism, and deadpan black humor, has brought him awards and acclaim the world over, but the maverick director cannot be so easily pinned down. Kitano threw something of a curveball in 1999 with Kikujiro no Natsu, an off-beat road movie that pairs together two unlikely travel mates. Though Kitano is known overseas for his cool and inscrutable film personae, in his native Japan, he is still best known as a comedic figure, after years of hosting wacky game and talk shows. All of his films have an underlying current of quirky humor, and this comic side of Kitano is most evident in the light-hearted, oddly endearing Kikujiro no Natsu, which almost resembles a series of television sketches in framework. The film has a lighter core, and certainly less blood, than other Kitano films, but features many of the elements that set apart a Kitano Takeshi film including idiosyncratic characters, quirky moments, taciturn screenplay, and a Hisaishi Joe film score.

For summer vacation, ten-year-old Masao (Sekiguchi Yusuke) decides to embark on a trip to find his mother who abandoned him when he was an infant. After some haggling from his wife (Kishimoto Kayoko), layabout middle-aged neighbor Kikujiro (Kitano Takeshi) ends up chaperoning Masao on his journey. The irresponsible Kikujiro, however, promptly loses all their money, leaving the pair in a financial limbo. To continue on their trip and keep spirits high, the two resort to hitchhiking, swindling, and general tomfoolery, encountering a host of strange personalities and peculiar adventures along the way.

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Product Title:	Kikujiro (DVD) (US Version) 菊次郎之夏 (DVD) (美國版) 菊次郎之夏 (DVD) (美国版) Kikujiro (US Version) Kikujiro (US Version)
Artist Name(s):	Kitano Takeshi (Actor) | Kishimoto Kayoko (Actor) 北野武 (Actor) | 岸本加世子 (Actor) 北野武 (Actor) | 岸本加世子 (Actor) 北野武 (Actor) | 岸本加世子 (Actor) Kitano Takeshi (Actor) | Kishimoto Kayoko (Actor)
Director:	Kitano Takeshi 北野武 北野武 北野武 Kitano Takeshi
Release Date:	2000-12-12
UPC Code:	043396052796
Language:	Japanese
Subtitles:	English, Spanish, French
Country of Origin:	Japan
Picture Format:	NTSC What is it?
Aspect Ratio:	Letterboxed
Color Information:	Color
Disc Format(s):	DVD
Region Code:	1 - USA, Canada, U.S. Territories What is it?
Rating:	PG-13 (MPAA)
Duration:	116 (mins)
Publisher:	Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Package Weight:	68 (g)
Shipment Unit:	1 What is it?
YesAsia Catalog No.:	1023423296

Director: Kitano Takeshi

In the tradition of Central Station comes Kikujiro, the highly acclaimed new film from Takeshi "Beat" Kitano, the award-winning director of Fireworks (Hana-Bi) and Sonatine.

Lonely nine-year-old Masao leaves Tokyo in search of his mother, a woman he's never met. He's accompanied on his journey across the Japanese countryside by surly, middle-aged petty crook Kikujiro (Kitano), who is none too happy being the chaperone. When Kikujiro gambles away all of Masao's travel money, the two must rely on their wits and the kindness of colorful strangers. Along the way, as the two share a series of wild and unpredictable adventures, they end up at a destination that neither of them could have imagined. Kikujiro has been hailed as "A beautiful, warm and inviting film." - Kevin Thomas, LOS ANGELES TIMES