Japanese movie: Kikujiro

A few good movies worth mentioning are Kikujiro (1999) 122 minutes by the Japanese director Kitano (Beat) Takeshi. The cast: Beat Takeshi, Yusuke Sekiguchi, Kayoko Kishimoto. A change of pace for Kitano, Kikujiro takes a lighter, more playful tone than Fireworks. Kitano stars as a cynical, manipulative lay-about who accompanies a boy Yusuke, on a quest to find the boy’s mother. The other movie Audition (1999) 115 minutes by the director MiikeTakashi with cast, Ryo Ishibashi, Shiina Eihi, Miyuki Matsuda. Director Miike (also director of Bird People of China) turns to the psycho thriller genre with this extreme tale about a widowed executive (Ishibashi) captivated by the charms of a young actress (top Japanese fashion model Shiina), until it becomes plain that romance is the last thing on her mind.