Key of Life (2012)

Viewed on Streaming. Script = nine (9) stars; subtitles = eight (8) stars. Director Kenji Uchida (who also wrote the screenplay) serves up a hugely-inventive, hilarious story (actually multiple stories that converge into one) with stunning (and unexpected) plot twists about trading places by adults (not necessarily grown ups). Things usually turn out to be not as they initially seem. Principal characters include: an apparent contract killer (with an unique body disposal technique); a successful business woman (determined to apply a business model to the process of matrimony with formal vetting of candidate partners, milestones, progress reports, etc.); and a lay-about, good-for-nothing "actor" (sort of contemplating suicide as his final (and, to date, only) role). There is a feel-good, Hollywood-style happy ending for each (as well as for a cat with a walk-on cameo). One ending includes an unexplained car crash (an amusing context injudiciously edited out and/or not re-shot?). Uchida has set a hectic pace that makes the viewer wonder just where the two hours of movie time went! There are, however, a few hammy gimmicks (including an overly Japanese-cute one using the sound of a car alarm). The Director extracts Goldilocks (just-right) acting performances all round in part by keeping dialog realistic and to a minimum (screaming, sobbing, melodramatic scenery eating, and other typical (and tedious) forms of movie emoting have been banished). Cinematography (semi wide screen, color) is very good with consistent scene lighting and color that makes for near seamless editing. Subtitles are very well done (by a pro who really seems to understands Japanese and English grammar). A delightful gem! WILLIAM FLANIGAN, PhD.

Writer/director Kenji Uchida's newest film, KEY OF LIFE, is a crisply written, adroitly directed, beautifully acted little story that is a comedy on the surface, but does not fail to show the other side of the infamous masks of comedy/tragedy. Though it is long (in excess of two hours) the story is presented in such a fine overlapping episodic way that it seems to whiz by to the final moments. The film opens with a business meeting in which we meet Kanae (Ryôko Hirosue), a 34-year- old magazine editor who announces boldly that she is getting married in two months. Without a candidate for a husband she engages the help of her fellow workers to help her search for the right man during a rather narrow time frame. We next meet Sakuari (Masato Sakai), a 35- year-old aspiring actor who is jobless, living in squalor, and has just failed a suicide attempt. Then we meet Kondo (Teroyuki Kagawa), a wealthy successful hit man carrying out his latest hit. After their simultaneously acts Sakurai and Kondo end up going to the same public bathhouse: Kondo slips on a bar of soap, sustains a concussion, is taken to a hospital where he discovers he has complete amnesia. The somewhat desperate Sakuari switches locker keys, and in effect switches identities with Kondo, of course not realizing that he is stepping into the identity of a hit man. Kanae visits the hospital where her father (who expects his daughter to marry soon) is gravely ill - the same hospital where Kondo is recovering. Fate is such that the two meet. How a failed actor takes on the role of a hit man without much success, and a hit man gains employment as an actor who can convincingly play gangster parts, and how the lovesick Kanae connects with Kondo and helps him try to regain his memory forms the rush to the surprise ending of the story.There is enough social commentary on relationships and what is love, what is acting, and what is ethical that makes this little film gleam. It is an excellent film from Film Movement and should enjoy success in the art houses. It is a breath of fresh air from the current clutter of over the edge CGI 'dramas'! Grady Harp, December 13

Comedy is hard, really hard. To me, it is harder to do than drama. It is because most sad and realistic things in life are the relatively same issues. I guess you can laugh at these too. But how to present the irony, decide on the laughable part, can be different to different people. I guess in general you are laughing about life. But to make general statements can be too generic .. you need specific examples, or stories.Here, in 'Key of Life' (as the translated title) that I watched under, this does it very very well indeed. The story swings between drama and comedy as the plot ask it to. In a way, the plot is smart, organized, just like 2 of the main characters - an assassin and a chief editor. The comedic, messy part sort of like the 3rd main character - the down and out actor.There are points to make, but all in line with the story, the goals of the character. They didn't seem out of place or forced. The performances are spot on. This piece is the type of 'gem' I really appreciate. The main characters in the story are fairly real, not 'quirky' real, but have individuality. There are some stereotypes in the supporting cast but 2hr so much you can do.Another good thing is the film does not hurry along, it spends enough time at enough places, and moments to make each one of them count.I like Masato Sakai very much. Just recently saw him in Legal High and that is just over the top funny. Here he is just as he needs to be - within the realm of his character, and never more.Might be a good time to see what the director's other film I've missed.

Ever since I saw Kenji Uchida's "A Stranger of Mine," I became a big fan of his. When I knew his work would be shown at the Summer Festival, I dashed to get a ticket and looked forward to watching it.It turned out to be better than I expected. When/if it is publicly released here, I will definitely watch it again. Behind the laughs and sadness, there is some sense of compassion for the modern men and women which made you want to munch on the plot and scenes days after the movie.A superb plot and great observer of daily life. In many ways, a killer's life is quite similar to an actor's when he had to pose as many different people. Except in our movie, the actor is a lousy one: Sakai Masato's plays Sakuari, an attempted and disorganized actor who fails to make ends meet, let alone realizing his dream in acting. Sakai seems such a different person from "My SO has got depression" although in both movies he plays a weak character who tends to have apologetic smiles. Sometimes I wonder if he is really a bad actor or he is playing the role of a bad actor because some scenes were bad when he held one facial expression for probably too long. Or was he just playing dumb?Opposite the spectrum is professional killer Kondo (Kagawa Teruyuki) who is organized, thoughtful and serious even when he has got amnesia. He tries very hard to regain his memory, only to find that he is twirled into a mishap involving the Yakuza gangsters. Kagawa is not very good looking but somehow the killer's personality makes him quite attractive with a little comical trace. The full comedy comes into place when their identities are switched, as in "The Prince and the Pauper," except here the swap is not voluntary. The laughers are guaranteed to intensify when kind and sensible Kanae (Hirosue Ryoko) steps in to help Kondo regain his memory while looking for her husband to appear in a pre-arranged wedding. The art direction is excellent: the numerous fake IDs, detailed hand- written notes, elaborated and well-stocked wardrobes all contribute rich accents to the story and is crucial to the final scene. An intriguing but very interesting plot. Very witty lines and superb performance by the cast. You can see human compassion here and there which makes the movie very enjoyable and makes you have more faith and confidence in life. Highly recommended.