INDEX
Imaizumi finds compelling irritation in Ninomiya’s films
Imaizumi: I think that Ninomiya’s invention, which was consistent from “The Charm of Others” to “Minori, On The Brink,” is that “the protagonist is grumpy. The protagonist is irritated and walks silently. There is an intensity of mystery, or rather tension and attraction, in a shot that is just that.
I imagined that perhaps Takeshi Kitano’s earlier films such as “Violent Cop” (1989) and “Sonatine” (1993) were the inspiration for this film, but I think it is basically a reflection of Ninomiya’s own anger at the unreasonableness of the world and the inability to get by in a reasonable manner. I think it is a reflection of his anger at the unreasonableness of the world and the inability to get by.
Ninomiya: I don’t know about that. I think it is important to make it as meaningful as possible.
Imaizumi: In relation to what Ninomiya said earlier about “something only I can make,” I feel that unless the director takes as his subject matter the questions that he himself wonders about in his daily life and things that cannot be easily answered, the film will inevitably end up smelling fake and “made-up.
When I watch Ninomiya’s films, I always feel a certain earnestness or something that comes from inside him. For example, in “Sweating the Small Stuff,” the scene where the main character, played by Ninomiya himself, is talking with his mother while eating seafood curry, I found myself crying for no reason. It is true that there are people who can weave a story even if it is not based on their own experiences. However, I don’t think it is possible to depict such a rich time unless it is a form that brings out emotions that the person knows, or something that is truly “inside” him or her.
– That film gave me the impression that the actual experience lifted into a film story.
Imaizumi: Recently, I happened to have a chance to watch a TV talk show featuring comedy duo Audrey’s Masayasu Wakabayashi, Nankai Candies’ Ryota Yamasato, and writer Kanako Nishi. In that episode, Nishi said to Wakabayashi and Yamasato, “You two are still angry all the time, aren’t you? Anger” takes a lot of energy, and as we grow older, we usually soften up and say, “Oh well,” but the two are still seriously pissed off at the world. They are surprised that the power of their anger has not diminished.
I feel the same way about Ninomiya. Of course, Ninomiya usually does not reveal his anger openly, but rather he is very low-key and gentle. But in the film, I feel that his inner anger quietly erupts in the form of that “grumpy protagonist.
Ninomiya: It’s true that my usual self is a person who is always petulant like this (laughs), but I wanted to put into the script what I usually don’t or can’t put out.
Imaizumi: But the main character in “DREAMING IN BETWEEN,” is different from your previous works, isn’t it? Even though the story is the same, it has a gentle touch. That is the part where I thought the way of making the film changed a little.
