Like Asura

Directed by Morita Yoshimitsu
Starring Otake Shinobu, Kuroki Hitomi, Fukatsu Eri, Fukada Kyoko

You may be part of a close-knit family, but there are some things you never know about each other.

In winter 1979, the four Takezawa sisters reunite upon learning an unsettling family secret: their daring father, now over seventy, seems to have a mistress — and even a love child! Choosing to shield their mother, Fuji  from the truth, each of the quartet’s personal problems also comes to light. The eldest, Tsunako  is entangled in a love affair. Makiko ), the second sister, quietly endures the knowledge that her husband has a younger girlfriend. Takiko, painfully shy, has resolved to marry her first love. And the youngest, Sakiko, who has been living with her boxer boyfriend, decides to get married after finding out she is pregnant. What was once thought to be a close-knit family reveals a different side.

Like Asura explores the idea that human beings possess many faces and harbour complex, often conflicting emotions.

Based on the very popular 1979 NHK drama of the same name, one of Japan’s most renowned directors, Morita Yoshimitsu, skilfully and sensitively portrays the range of emotions each character holds in this timeless film. Recently re-adapted by Koreeda Hirokazu as a Netflix drama series.

© 2003 TOHO CO., LTD. HAKUHODO INC. THE MAINICHI NEWSPAPERS. NIPPON SHUPPAN HANBAI INC.

Co-presented by the Japan Foundation.