Your ticket includes a recorded Filmmaker Q&A following the film.
After serving 13 years in prison for murder, ex-yakuza henchman Mikami (an outstanding Koji Yakusho) is a free man. But life on the outside is not what he expected: growing up a gangster didn’t give him the tools to navigate his new world. Writer/director Miwa Nishikawa’s diligently researched adaptation is superbly nuanced; filled with moments of humor, tenderness, and ferocity.
Mikami, now middle aged, must find his place in society. The Yakuza no longer wants this aging ex-con and Japan’s welfare system is so complex it leaves him reeling. When an idealistic TV director offers to help him re-adjust, Mikami must learn to trust, to have patience, to explore his emotions, and to finally see the open sky for the first time in his turbulent life. Audiences will be drawn to our protagonist's journey of redemption and be rooting for him the whole way. “Directed with piercing insight, emotional depth and true compassion.” --Maggie Lee, Variety
Director Biography
Born in 1974 in Hiroshima, Miwa Nishikawa earned a degree in literature from Waseda University. She is the author of the novels Gods of Yesterday (2009) and The Long Excuse (2015) and directed Wild Berries (2003), Sway (2006), Dear Doctor (2009), Dreams for Sale (2012) and The Long Excuse (2016, 2017 MSPIFF), based on her novel.
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