Writer/Director Satoshi Miki opens his film with a curious moment, as law student Fumiya Takemura (Joe Odagiri) hopes buying three-colour toothpaste will save him from his rock-bottom circumstances. The situation reveals itself when loan shark Aiichiro Fukuhara (Tomokazu Miura) bursts in, demanding the debt he’s owed be paid back in three days or else. The moment ends with Takemura accidentally squishing the toothpaste, symbolising his dashed hopes amid this seemingly inescapable situation.
Things take a curious turn when Fukuhara makes an offer to clear Takemura’s debt in exchange for accompanying him on a walk across Tokyo. There’s no set time for the journey, it could last three days or even a month, although the student sees no alternative and accepts. It becomes clear the destination is a police station in Kasumigaseki, where Fukuhara intends to turn himself in for a crime he deeply regrets.
Miki’s adaptation of Yoshinaga Fujita’s novel is equally humorous and heartfelt, making for an understated gem that’s thankfully been rediscovered by third window films.
The journey offers trips down memory lane for the pair, revisiting past experiences while sharing stories and discussing how a small watch shop stays in business. A charming array of supporting characters pop up along the way, while fun quirks of life appear in guises such as a thieving cosplayer and a flamboyantly dressed guitarist.
A sense of melancholy is also felt, as Fukuhara feels sorrow for where his life has reached while Takemura revisits memories he’s not fond of. This stems from the student’s abandonment as a child, leaving him to believe he’s attracted to misfortune and uncertain of his direction in life. The walk allows the pair to understand each other and what life experiences influenced their bad decisions.
The performers effortlessly capture the growing bond between these two men, as they open up to one another and form a surrogate family which Takemura enjoys being part of. The character relationships are wonderfully conveyed, aiding the eventual ending’s impact. In ways which recall Hal Ashby’s The Last Detail, the resolution is known from early on yet that doesn’t lessen the impact. Miki’s adaptation of Yoshinaga Fujita’s novel is equally humorous and heartfelt, making for an understated gem that’s thankfully been rediscovered by third window films.
Adrift in Tokyo is out now on Third Window Films Blu-Ray
Adrift in Tokyo (2007) and James’s Archive
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