Kikujiros Sommer (1999)

Kikujiros Sommer: Directed by Takeshi Kitano. With Takeshi Kitano, Yusuke Sekiguchi, Kayoko Kishimoto, The Great Gidayû. A young, naive boy sets out alone on the road to find his wayward mother. Soon he finds an unlikely protector in a crotchety man and the two have a series of unexpected adventures along the way.

“From its hauntingly beautiful soundtrack by Joe Hisaishi to the wonderful characters who inhabit Takeshi Kitanou0026#39;s magical Japan – everything in this movie comes together to make this one of modern cinemau0026#39;s truly underrated masterpiece.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe story involves a petty thug, Kikujiro, who is coerced into accompanying a young boy, Masao, on his cross country journey to find his birth mother. Along the way they meet a whole host of characters. Some friendly, some mysterious, some quirky, some abrasive, but all of them refreshingly human.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eA lesser writer or director would have settled for a quick dose of weirdness from the main charactersu0026#39; fellow wanderers, but Takeshi Kitano milks them for all of the depth and endearment that the too few minutes we are graced with their presence allows.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIf you enjoyed the whimsical, go-nowhere feel of Lost in Translation, you will LOVE this movie. In my opinion Beat Takeshiu0026#39;s efforts blow Sophia Coppolau0026#39;s out of the water.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNine out of ten.”