Penance (TV series)
| Shokuzai | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Kiyoshi Kurosawa |
| Written by | Kiyoshi Kurosawa |
| Based on |
Shokuzai by Kanae Minato |
| Starring |
Kyoko Koizumi Yu Aoi Eiko Koike Sakura Ando Chizuru Ikewaki |
| Music by | Yusuke Hayashi |
| Cinematography | Akiko Ashizawa |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Original channel | WOWOW |
| Release date |
|
| Original run | January 8, 2012 – February 5, 2012 |
| Running time | 270 minutes |
| No. of episodes | 5 |
| Official website | |
Penance, known in Japanese as Shokuzai (贖罪), is a Japanese television drama miniseries that started airing on WOWOW on January 2012. It is based on a novel of the same name by Kanae Minato and directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa.[1]
Plot
A young girl, Emili, is killed by a stranger in elementary school. Although her four friends saw the suspect, they say they don't remember it. 15 years have passed and the incident is still unsolved. Emili's mother, Asako (Kyoko Koizumi), makes them do penance for it. The series focuses on the psychological repercussions on each of the four girls, 15 years later.
Cast
- Kyoko Koizumi as Asako Adachi
- Yu Aoi as Sae Kikuchi
- Eiko Koike as Maki Shinohara
- Sakura Ando as Akiko Takano
- Chizuru Ikewaki as Yuka Ogawa
- Ryo Kase as Koji Takano
- Ayumi Ito as Mayu Murakami
- Mirai Moriyama as Takahiro Otsuki
- Teruyuki Kagawa as Hiroaki Aoki
- Hirofumi Arai as Detective Moriya
- Kyusaku Shimada as Detective Yabe
- Kenji Mizuhashi as Tanabe
- Tomoharu Hasegawa as Keita Murakami
- Tetsushi Tanaka as Toshio Adachi
- Hazuki Kimura as Emili Adachi
Release
The 270-minute film version of the drama screened out of competition at the 69th Venice International Film Festival in 2012.[2]
Reception
Oliver Lyttelton of IndieWire gave Penance a B- grade. He felt the first four segments are so unexpectedly funny, rich and moving that it makes more disappointing that Kiyoshi Kurosawa can't bring it to a satisfying close. Meanwhile, he also commented that the film is a reminder of what a tremendously talented writer and director Kurosawa is.[3] Todd Brown of Twitch Film felt each episode is meticulously well constructed and beautifully performed. He said Penance is certainly an intriguing and worthwhile investment of time and effort despite not being up to the standards of Kurosawa's best work.[4]
Mark Schilling of The Japan Times said, "throughout the series the Kurosawa style, minimalist but atmospheric, imparts an eerie, intimate tension to even the most mundane scenes, while revealing inner lives more by incisive suggestion than the usual TV-drama shouting."[5] Andrew Sun of South China Morning Post noted the video quality and the predictable structure are constant reminders of that it is a television project. However, he said, "little of Kurosawa's brooding style is lost in the smaller budget and extreme close-ups demanded of the smaller screen."[6]
References
- ↑ Young, Deborah (August 28, 2012). "Penance (Shokuzai): Venice Review". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ↑ Fainaru, Dan (August 29, 2012). "Penance". Screen Daily.
- ↑ Lyttelton, Oliver (August 28, 2012). "Venice Review: Kiyoshi Kurosawa's 'Penance' Is An Absorbing 4 1/2 Hour Drama That Falters At Its Ending". IndieWire.
- ↑ Brown, Todd (September 14, 2012). "TIFF 2012 Review: PENANCE Is A Soapy But Intense Study Of Grief". Twitch Film.
- ↑ Schilling, Mark (August 17, 2012). "'Shokuzai (Penance)'". The Japan Times.
- ↑ Sun, Andrew (December 13, 2012). "Film review: Penance". South China Morning Post.
External links
- Official website (Japanese)
- Penance at the Internet Movie Database