Kikujiro (1999)
Kikujiro (1999)
Plot.
Where to Watch.
Currently Kikujiro is available for streaming online, rent, buy or watch for free on: Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, YouTube, MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel
Streaming in:🇺🇸 United States
Cast & Crew.
Takeshi Kitano
Kikujiro / Director / Screenplay / Editor
Yusuke Sekiguchi
Masao
Kayoko Kishimoto
Kikujiro's Wife
Yuko Daike
Masao's Mother
The Great Gidayû
Biker
Kazuko Yoshiyuki
Masao's Grandmother
Beat Kiyoshi
Man at Bus Stop
The Great Gidayû
Biker Fatso
Rakkyo Ide
Biker Baldy
Nezumi Imamura
An-chan
Fumie Hosokawa
Juggler Girl
Akaji Maro
Crazy Man
Daigaku Sekine
Yakuza Boss
Makoto Inamiya
Yakuza Henchman #1
Hisahiko Murasawa
Yakuza Henchman #2
Yoji Tanaka
Yakuza Henchman #3
Kanako Kojima
Hostess #1
Fuyu Ooba
Hostess #2
Yuko Yasui
Hostess #3
Chiyomi Matsumoto
Hostess #4
Hidehisa Ebata
Stall-keeper
Isamu Ishizaka
Tengu
Kenta Arai
Masao's Friend
Shinobu Ookawa
Kind Woman (uncredited)
Hirotsugu Kurosu
Juggler Girl's Boyfriend (uncredited)
Takeshi Ōnishi
Truck Driver (uncredited)
Naoto Seshimo
Tap Dancing Barista (uncredited)
Kuniharu Tokunaga
Groundkeeper (uncredited)
Yoshiyuki Ukon
Hotel Manager (uncredited)
Shinji Komiya
Production Manager / Line Producer
Tatsuo Ozeki
Production Design
Takefumi Yoshikawa
Casting
Media.
Details.
Release DateJune 5, 1999
Original Name菊次郎の夏
StatusReleased
Running Time1h 57m
Filming LocationsJapan
Genres
Wiki.
Kikujiro (Kikujirō no Natsu (菊次郎の夏, literally "Kikujirō's Summer")) is a 1999 Japanese road drama film written, directed and co-edited by Takeshi Kitano, who also stars in the film with Yusuke Sekiguchi. Its score was composed by Joe Hisaishi. The film was entered into the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.Kikujiro tells the story of a young boy searching for his mother during his summer vacation. The film is mostly divided into smaller chapters, listed as entries in the boy's summer vacation diary. Kitano's inspiration for the character (not the film) was his own father, Kikujiro Kitano, a gambler who struggled to feed his family and pay the rent.Similar to his earlier works Getting Any? and A Scene at the Sea, Kitano references the yakuza only tangentially in Kikujiro, a departure from his work in crime dramas such as Sonatine and Hana-bi. Aimed at the whole family, the film was allegedly inspired by The Wizard of Oz with the basic premise being a road trip. Kitano's familiar elements and locales are present: drawings, vignettes, the seaside, and angels. Although the plot is composed largely of sad events, the film often has a light-hearted atmosphere, achieved mostly through Kitano's character and his somewhat bizarre encounters.