Asian Drama

The drama is set in an retirement home named "Yasuragi no Sato La Strada" where only those who had worked in the TV entertainment industry such as actors, writers, musicians and artists are allowed to live at. Kikumura Sakae, who used to be a popular scriptwriter, lives among the former stars and the problems they face are presented in a humorous manner.

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"Tora-san, Welcome Back" is the fiftieth film in the "Tora-san" series. Its release is also set to coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of the series. Kiyoshi Atsumi, who played the eponymous character, will appear via scenes intercut with previous films.

During the Sengoku period, the Ii family governs the Totomi region. Due to many past wars, there are no more male successors left to become a lord. Naotora Ii (Kou Shibasaki), the only daughter of the lord, now becomes a lord. She faces a difficult period. The constant love from her fiance, whom she became engaged with at a young age, helps her to keep moving forward.

Niko, a middle schooler in Japan, witnesses a fight between two strangers on her way home from school. Desperate to talk to someone about the event but too afraid to tell her family, she responds to an ad for the "Tele-Club" and gets in touch with a robot-obsessed otaku named Ichiro Sudo. The two team up to solve bizarre cases taking place all over the city, as assigned by a retired spy and her eccentric assistant.

34-year-old Motoko, an employee at a credit union, is stunned when she learns her best friend and co-worker, Mariko, has embezzled 300 million yen and disappeared. Motoko, still un-married, lives at home with her parents and has no future plans or goals. Tired of her monotonous, mundane lifestyle, she decides to move out and live on her own. She happens upon a beautiful old geshuku, or lodging house, called "Happiness Sancha." The building is surrounded by lush vegetable and flower gardens, and is nestled right on the riverbank. There are only 2 remaining tenants; Natsuko, a college professor who has lived there since she herself was in college, and Kizuna, an erotic manga artist whose work doesn't sell much. The manager, Yuka, is desperate to take on more boarders, which is perfect timing for Motoko. This simple drama examines the life of four totally different women brought together under one roof, and follows them on their own searches for happiness at "Happiness Sancha."

Borrowing a similar plot device to Memento, a Maths professor suffers from current memory loss, and can only remember events up until his accident. Everything else that is current lasts only 80 minutes, which is why he relies on little notes and his blackboards to remind himself of important current information each time he comes back to square one. A housekeeper is hired to look after him, and despite the trying times and unique circumstances, both of them manage to strike a deep friendship, through the help of mathematics - one who inspires, and the other who admires. The friendship develops further as the housekeeper's 10 year old son, nicknamed by the Professor "Root" for his square head, comes into the picture, and three of their lives become intertwined. There are many touching moments in the movie, and almost everything revolved around mathematics, food, and even baseball! But you'd come to understand that the movie goes beyond that, and clearly the message is in the philosophy of maths itself, using concepts and applying it to real life, to living life. As such, it made the mathematical concepts introduced here quite accessible and easy to understand. The formation of friendships is core to the story, and the antagonist is none other than a jealous sister-in-law trying to break up what seemed to be going good for everyone involved. I sort of paralleled it to real life, in a not-too-recent episode which I and a few friends personally encountered, and the subsequent treatment we suffered. It makes you wonder how sometimes, even though with honest and sincere intentions, and out of the earnestness in valuing a friendship, you're demonized. It's quite uncanny, but all 3 characters in the professor, the housekeeper and her son are all quite lovable, both in character and in presentation. The cinematography is brilliant too, bringing out the best in the landscapes of the town that they live in, in a picturesque like fashion. I liked the simplicity of the movie, and the feel good factor that exudes from it. It's very beautiful and poetic to watch, given its even and comfortable pace, and it's definitely one of my favourite movies.