Jesus Movie Review

Japanese wonder Hiroshi Okuyama's presentation highlight landed one of the greatest trade prizes out world film at the Spanish celebration.
Someone up there truly prefers Hiroshi Okuyama, the 22-year-old Japanese multihyphenate whose daffy graduation venture Jesus (Boku Wa Iesu-Sama Ga Kirai) not just debuted in the New Directors rivalry at the respected San Sebastian Film Festival however scooped the segment's €50,000 ($57,750) prize. Lifeless in its crackpot humor while cutting out region somewhere close to caprice and WTF, it introduces the screen's third most-shot character — after Satan and Santa Claus — as we've never observed Him: the Tom Thumb estimated nonexistent companion of a withdrawn fifth-grader.



Gobbled up just before San Sebastian by Japanese behemoth Nikkatsu for a 2019 household discharge — Easter, maybe? — Jesus will certainly parlay the lucrative gong into further appointments at celebrations hoping to flavor up their slates with strange passage. What's more, albeit even at 76 minutes Okuyama's introduction feels like a cushioned out short, the jolt entry of such a young wonder answers the supplications of Japan-arranged cinephiles looking for successors for built up names like Naomi Kawase, Takashi Miike and Hirokazu Kore-eda.

The current year's Palme d'Or champ Kore-eda has regularly centered around kiddies in his motion pictures, and Okuyama — executive, author, supervisor and cinematographer — in like manner tries to summon the inward existence of his somewhat little hero (Yura Sato). A characteristically tranquil and thoughtful single youngster, the 9-year-old moves from Tokyo to the residential community of Nakanojo with his mom Eriko (Yuko Kibiki) and father Fumitoshi (Kenichi Akiyama) following the demise of his matured granddad Satoru (Koichi Nihei). They move in with Satoru's dowager Fumi (Akko Tadano), and Yura is selected at the closest school, which happens to be a Christian foundation. Up until this point, so standard workmanship motion picture.

Yura at first battles to adjust to the devoutness of his cohorts (who cheerfully run for the sanctuary each morning) and the obviousness of his frigid, underpopulated new condition — Nakanojo is in reality not as much as a hundred miles from the capital, yet is arranged in a sloping area in Honshu's hinterland. He's supported in his acclimatization by merciful instructor Mr. Warita (Ippei Osako), who trains him in the fundamentals of supplication. This action yields a prompt and most unforeseen result while, having already been quickly unmistakable (to hawk looked at watchers) amid a message, Jesus Christ himself — in quiet, small however hyperactive shape — appears acceptable before a startled Yura.

Nobody else can see this nano-adaptation of the Lord, whose appearance at the 19-minute stamp is joined by the film's remiss title-card. Yet, He stays with forlorn Yura in his inert hours and gives divine if fairly genie-like help by noting the fellow's desires. On account of Jesus' mediation, Yura turns out to be best buddies with his class' most famous child, sports-distraught Kazuma (Riki Okuma), and rapidly blooms into an upbeat and balanced kid.

There's not particularly to the narrative of Jesus, whose plot spins around a sudden auto collision not long after the midway check — one which leaves Kazuma genuinely harmed and dives Yura into unorthodox sadness (the first Japanese title deciphers as "I Hate Mr. Jesus"). Shapeless in its mental and philosophical angles, the film is best in the silliest snapshots of visual silliness, with Christ (played by Tokyo-based Aussie entertainer Chad Mullane) springing up in most sudden spots — including on the back of a yellow elastic ducky amid Yura's bathtime.

Such gut chuckles beneficially accentuate a generally moderate paced, stop-begin inundation into the nippy, dark brown universe of Nakanojo and its environs, caught in a dull palette of hues by Okuyama's to a great extent fixed camera (which changes from tripod to handheld for scenes of Yura and Kazuma's open air play.) He'll apparently have the capacity to gainfully team up with more experienced and gifted editors and cinematographers on any future wide screen excursions. Reports that Okuyama is currently working for a main Tokyo promotion office, in any case, ring with the impression here that his sensibility may discover all the more remunerating outlets in non-realistic structures.

Creation organization: Closing Remarks

Cast: Yura Sato, Riki Okuma, Kazuma Okuma, Yuko Kibiki, Akko Tadano, Kenichi Akiyama, Ippei Osako, Chad Mullane

Executive screenwriter-cinematographer-manager: Hiroshi Okuyama

Maker: Tadashi Yoshino

Writer: Koshi Kishita

Setting: San Sebastian International Film Festival (New Directors)

Deals: Nikkatsu, Tokyo (international@nikkatsu.co.jp)

In Japanese

76 minutes