"A Daitoei Production" "Produced by Masataro Kaku Takero Ito Kiichi Ichikawa" "Script by Yoko Mizuki" "Photography by Shunichiro Nakao Music by Masao Oki" "Directed by Tadashi Imai" "Show me!" "What a nice bike!" "Get off stupid!" "Give me back my bike!" "We take turns!" "Don't you understand that?" "Fatty!" "Bullfrog!" "Get off!" "Get off!" "Get off it!" "Fatty!" "Bullfrog!" "Get off!" "Fat frog." "I'll smash you!" "Female gorilla!" "It's one go each!" "You're a real pain!" "I'll tell on you!" "I'll tell Grandma Shigeko!" "KIKU AND ISAMU" "What have you been doing?" "You're late." "I'm sorry!" "Come on and carry it." "Quickly." "Grandma, they pinned my calligraphy up on the wall at school today." "It's the first time!" "Hurry!" "The silk worms will be getting hungry!" "Grandma, Isamu is doing it again." "Never mind me eating." "Kiku took the bike without waiting for her turn." "You little fan!" "Gorilla sows the seeds and Crow comes and strips the plant..." "Ouch!" "You cut well again oh my trusty sword!" "That was easy!" "Why did you make him cry?" "He's just pretending to cry!" "You're terrible the pair of you!" "I'll get you." "Will you stop that!" "Kiku!" "Isamu!" "God, my back hurts!" "Veneration to Amitabha Buddha..." "Grandma, if you see the doctor he'll make it better." "Doctor's take money." "I hate all that "stick out your tongue" stuff they say." "All this suffering is a curse of the ancestors." "It's all superstition." "Ancestral curses are just ridiculous." "Grandma." "It's the age of automation now." "Go and kneel at the Butsudan and apologise to the ancestors." "All I said was the word 'automation'." "The one who said it was ridiculous was Isamu." "It's the same." "Whichever of you said it." "People who understand nothing spout all these foreign words..." "Just go to the altar." "Apologise to your mother, grandfather and great grandfather!" "Do it properly!" "Why are you so angry with me?" "Your school results." "You're always right at the bottom of the class." "I am a soul in pain..." "You're doing it again..." "Take it off... ouch!" "You're doing it again." "You..." "You really are a pain!" "You sure are carrying on about it!" "Are you going somewhere Kiku?" "I'm going into town." "I'm going to the doctor." "That's the best thing to do." "It hurts too much to sleep." "Let alone for me to look after the silkworms." "I'm going to help at his place with the harvest so I'll come with you." "After we eat I'll walk with you as far as the factory." "You're going for a month?" "Yeah." "I'll just eat quickly." "It would be helpful if you could take some of the rice." "It'll be hard to be apart so much." "Stop teasing!" "Isamu is easy but Kiku here dies if she doesn't eat." "Isamu's on his own looking after the house?" "Is that OK?" "Better than leaving the two of them alone together." "We'll start on ahead." "She's already caught up with us." "Young people walk quickly." "Take care!" "You too, Kimie!" "Be careful!" "..." "Darling..." "Take care!" "You too, Kimie!" "Be careful!" "..." "Darling..." "Don't you behave like that!" "A great love scene!" "It's terrible!" "What are you laughing about?" "Come on then." "Hurry up." "I'm sorry Kimie." "It's fine." "See you soon." "120 monme." "100 monme is 50 yen, so how much is 120 monme?" "Errr..." "How much?" "Quickly!" "20 monme is 10 yen so plus 50... 60 yen." "60?" "Wow, she speaks Japanese." "Indeed." "Let's take a break." "Just a few more to sell." "You must be tired." "It's heavy." "We sold them so cheaply Grandma." "Everyone is always haggling the prices down." "300... 70" "How much will the doctor cost?" "There will be some left over." "We have sold a lot." "Do you want some candy?" "Yes." "We'll get it on the way home." "I'm thirsty." "Let's have a drink of water." "Please wait in the waiting room over there." "Over there?" "Shouldn't I wait here?" "That big basket is in the way." "Please put it in the hallway." "In the hallway then." "I have come because..." "I've hurt my back and at night I can't..." "OK." "Please wait in the waiting room." "This way please sir." "Kawada-san?" "Ah, I mean the other Kawada-san." "This way please." "You have to wait your turn." "With this many people waiting it will take ages." "This new clinic has separate sections for specialisms, but when you get in its only the one doctor." "It sure takes time." "You're right about that!" "You go home ahead." "We still have the radishes and aubergines left." "I'll come back later." "Even so I'll go home with you." "It'll take forever." "Go home." "I don't want to." "We can't leave Isamu alone." "You go home." "Pick some mulberry leaves." "You took the day off school." "You can't do it just to play around." "But Grandma, you said you'd buy me some candy." "OK, I'll buy you some." "Off you go." "Roll up, roll up." "It's me, Yasube!" "I sell everything cheap!" "From 10 yen to 50." "140 items!" "Special sale!" "Yasube's cheap sale!" "Have a look, it's free to browse." "Girls and Grannies, come on and have a look." "Feel free to touch." "Your special local stall." "Yasube's cheap goods." "It's 10 yen." "You'll not find cheaper anywhere." "Come and buy." "Touch and feel the quality." "Thank you." "She wants to pretty herself!" "What on earth will happen when she's at marrying age?" "She's my granddaughter." "Where's her mother?" "She died of a bad chest." "She was working in a dining hall." "She sent money home sometimes." "When she went into labour I thought it was just stomach pains." "I was going to give her the traditional bear gallbladder for it." "I was amazed!" "A kid!" "I got the midwife in." "It was 7 at night." "I ended up looking after the kid." "When the midwife saw the kid's face, she said she'd never seen such a black one." "And the hair was curly, like a perm!" "When she told me that and I realised what it meant" "I was stunned all over again!" "I slapped her and told her off but it was too late." "I heard that there were 2 in the village." "So she's the one?" "What about the second one?" "Her younger brother." "Two?" "And both with you?" "Something has to be done." "Unless they get taken by America it's hard on you at your age." "You know who the father is?" "I don't have a clue about the father." "I was going to get her brother to search when he came back, but he's dead." "There's nobody I can get to help." "Then you need to get the adoption agency to help." "There's a place to help get these kids adopted in America." "I've got a friend who works there." "How about it?" "Oh." "I see." "You have to think about their future or it'll be tough." "You can't mess around." "They haven't noticed that they're different yet, have they?" "I told them it's sunburn and will get better." "That's not going to last." "It'll be hard when they realise." "An injection?" "It won't hurt." "You've twisted the nerve and need to be treated." "Lie down." "I'll give you a shot and you'll feel much better." "This way please." "Stay still please." "How much will it cost?" "The injection?" "I'll let you off the consultation fee, so... with the injection and the medicine, it will be 350 yen." "300 and what?" "!" "Lie down please." "I need to pee." "When I get a shock it leaks out!" "It's horrible being old." "I wonder why she's so late." "Why's it so salty?" "Get out of the way." "I'm so hungry." "Why are you drinking it?" "Now it's too bland." "I'll do it!" "Shut up." "I'll do it!" "If you put that much in it'll be salty." "Grandma never uses that much." "God, that's salty." "It's still salty!" "Is it still too salty?" "Too bland." "I'm not asking you any more." "We'll wait until she's home to eat anyway." "I'll go and look for her." "It's dark on the path and she can't walk easily with her back pain." "Come with me and protect me." "There's nothing to be scared of." "It's Grandma." "Grandma!" "Don't shout, you gave me a fright." "I was having a think." "You can scare us oldies if you give us a shock like that." "What did the doctor say?" "This and that." "And he wanted 350 yen!" "They tried to truss me up and hurt me, and he said just one shot wouldn't cure it." "So I ran away." "Let's go home." "You came to meet me." "Even Isamu." "Did you sell all the vegetables we had left?" "Hey, there's something in here." "What is it?" "It's too dark to see here." "Wait until we get home." "It's a baseball cap for Isamu." "Sandals!" "They're for me, aren't they?" "You gave up having the injection and bought these?" "You'll wash properly tonight, OK." "And wash your face in the morning too." "OK?" "OK." "Hey, kid." "Kid!" "Are you Isamu?" "Yeah?" "Come here a minute." "Let's take a picture of you all." "A Photo?" "He's going to take a photo of us." "I don't want to." "Then you don't have to." "Line up here." "Make some space." "What do want the photo for?" "I'll give you some gum, if you line up nicely." "OK, I'll do it too." "OK." "Look at me." "What's that?" "OK." "All done." "Miso soup with onion is quickest to make." "But eating the same thing morning and night for a month drives me crazy." "It's not so bad being mum and cooking." "You're a kid so you don't really know." "I hope your wife gets back soon." "You must be lonely." "She said there's was holiday at the factory." "You understand how I feel, eh?" "E ugh!" "Lovey stuff!" "Kiku!" "Kiku?" "I'll sharpen both sickles for you." "Kiku, he said he wants to take your picture." "He's done mine." "So you're Kiku Kawada." "Hold still." "I'll take a nice picture so smile nicely." "Smile!" "Don't stick your tongue out like a dog, it looks silly." "I don't want to." "This "silly" face is what I've always had." "Are you Mrs. Kawada?" "Yes?" "Did your girl just come back?" "You..." "Who are you?" "Well, actually." "The only photos I have are these ones." "Please have a look." "This is her 1st birthday." "With her mother, who's dead now." "And this is when she was 3, on her rites day." "This is with Kimie, the tenant opposite." "Kimie's husband borrowed a camera and took it for me." "When was it taken?" "I've forgotten to be honest." "Maybe last year." "Who was that?" "Dunno." "Who was that?" "Where were you?" "I was playing." "Where were you?" "Kiku, your grandma's calling you." "How about the rent?" "It was payday yesterday." "Yeah, before it's all gone!" "I wanted Kawada to alter the old clothes for the kids." "Is she not back yet?" "I got an apron at school." "Stamp the bank book please." "Smile." "Come on, smile." "Stop that." "You'd better hurry." "You shouldn't be hanging around doing nothing." "Your grandma's picking mulberry leaves." "She said I should ask you to come." "Understand?" "You should be more feminine if you're a girl." "This is the way I am." "You're not exactly sweet and lovable." "OK." "I'm on my way." "Don't get them wet." "Quick now." "Are the leaves wet?" "Soaked." "Oh well." "Ah, Sister." "It's quite a storm." "You're working hard." "I was terrified." "We need to get them home and spread out to dry." "We got a photo taken of us today." "Who is he?" "Where's he from?" "Someone important." "What does he want with us?" "That's a beautiful watermelon." "Where did you get it at this time of year?" "It's from the next town, a seedless one." "I always wanted to try it." "I see." "We've just got the mulberry patch and it's half shadowed by the mountain." "We can grow burdock but not watermelons." "What do you mean?" "Why important?" "I hear watermelon is good for your kidneys." "Is that so?" "Were talking about kidneys, keep out of it." "Ha, she's angry with you now." "That guy." "What's he going to do with the photos?" "Show them to someone?" "I don't know." "You just keep saying "I don't know"." "I keep telling you, I don't know." "You keep asking." "Don't tell me that you don't know." "I don't really know yet but..." "Either you or Isamu" "Someone might have a good place for you to be..." "It's someone to look after you." "What do you mean "looking after"?" "By who?" "You'd be better off going to America and not in this poor and wretched place." "America?" "Who would be going?" "You, or Isamu." "One of you could go and have a look and see..." "I don't know of course but I'm 70 in two years time." "I can't be here with you for ever." "I have to think about you two after I'm gone." "I don't know what to do." "It might be better if you go to your father's country." "The important guy said so." "He can find someone rich." "It would be better for you to go and be adopted." "I have to think about when you're older." "Now's the time." "Your father is an American." "I was going to keep quiet about it but you'd find out sometime." "Kiku, listen to me carefully." "I've come to realise it's the best thing for you." "I don't want to." "If you go to America." "I don't want to." "I don't want to." "Girls have to go and get married." "If you stay here you won't be able to do that." "Why?" "Give these leaves to the wholesale guy when he comes tomorrow." "This year we haven't been able to get much." "I've not told anyone and you mustn't tell Isamu." "Don't think about what we don't know yet." "They might say they don't want either of you." "I've brought you both up from when you were weaned, and I ground your rice flour myself." "You're both dear to me." "I can't think about my feelings, I have to do what's best for you." "I know I mustn't be selfish." "That time has gradually come." "It's more than I can do." "Once we've done the mulberry leaves come and have a bath with me." "If you want to have a bath alone you go ahead." "What are you doing Kiku?" "Here's something good." "You know how rubber loses its colour if you stretch it?" "You can't tell the colour if it's like this, can you?" "Hmm." "It doesn't change much." "Today there's no class and we don't have to study." "Teacher's on a rocket for a trip to the moon!" "Let's get the dog to eat Isamu's lunch." "This is good." "It looks tasty." "Don't make a mess." "Eat more properly." "Ha, they gave it your lunch." "You gave it my lunch?" "We did." "We did." "Isamu!" "What's going on?" "Who brought the dog?" "What's so funny?" "Get out." "I told you about the location of each prefectural capital..." ""Be Ambitious" by Kiku Kawada" "Now, about industrial production..." "Your homework was to revise what we did earlier..." "Kiku." "Show me." "So answer my question?" "Where is a source of copper?" "We're in trouble because I ate your lunch." "It was you who brought the dog in." "It was you who gave my lunch to the dog." "You should eat bananas then." "Blackie!" "Teacher!" "OK, put your books away." "Stand up." "Bow." "He called me "blackie"." "Kyuichi!" "Well he is so what's wrong with telling the truth?" "Who told you that?" "Well?" "Tell me." "Isamu's your friend." "Well it's true so what's wrong with saying it?" "I'm no blackie." "Come with me to the classroom." "I want to talk with you." "Isamu, you too." "You lot go outside and play." "Over here." "Over here!" "Come on!" "Damn it!" "What's the matter, Kiku?" "Nothing." "OK, gather round." "Don't carry it, you gorilla." "I'll smash you like a bug." "What will be, will be." "Lots of silk worm cocoons, aren't there?" "Yes, it's pretty good." "Lots of silk worm cocoons, aren't there?" "Sorry, I have been really busy." "Kimie's back." "Kimie, is that you?" "Thanks for keeping an eye on things for me." "I left without thinking about how hard it would be for you." "He didn't know how to wash a loin cloth!" "She brought us these!" "Thank you so much." "Kiku." "I'll put it on the altar for you." "She's really considerate, isn't she?" "But she didn't thank you." "Have you been resting?" "Your back is still not better, is it?" "It really hurts today and I can't work like this." "It's a curse on me." "It must be tough." "Can I help?" "Not today." "You haven't seen your husband for a while, and I can't get you all sweaty" "I'll leave that up to him!" "Stop that kind of talk." "You're always the same!" "The men are listening..." "Were you listening?" "What's that?" "The bed springs creaking?" "I'm going home." "That sod Kyuichi said..." "Have you been fighting again?" "Were you causing it?" "He was calling me "blackie"..." "When I told the teacher he just said that there are different colour goldfish." "Goldfish?" "These are still second rate quality..." "Yes, I suppose they are." "They used to pay us 1,500..." "It's down a lot from the 1,800 we used to get." "Since I only make this amount it will be hard to earn enough to eat." "The adviser was around trying to find you and offer advice but you're always out in the fields working." "That's no good." "There's no way I could afford new equipment anyway." "Goldfish?" "Payment?" "You and me are black." "Don't you know it, you little twit?" "Stop blathering and go and bring the water." "What?" "Stay out of it." "You stop blathering and go and wash your face." "Apple blossom..." "She sometimes says such really horrible things." "Isamu!" "It'll be the festival soon." "Let's all go together." "Wow!" "He eats rice crackers!" "Hey, where's Isamu?" "Oh no." "Trouble!" "We'd better look for him." "Roll up, roll up!" "Come see the famous harvest moon girl!" "Well worth a look..." "Where has he got to?" "He was eating so much he may have burst." "Roll up!" "The sins of the parents are seen in the child..." "Her face is human, her body is a bear the cries echoed in the depths of the mountains..." "Unbelievably born of a woman..." "Ladies and gentlemen, girls and boys come and see..." "Covered in bearlike hairy fur..." "shocking and shameful..." "Come and see the hairy lady..." "Maybe they've put Isamu on show too." "Go away!" "You're ruining my trade!" "Let's go." "Well worth a look..." "This is a good one to make pickles in for your husband." "...somewhere soft to stick your 'radish'." "Kiku's not ready for that quite yet." "You want a 'grandchild's hand'?" "I think we have that already, don't we?" "How about for you?" "I've got grandkids' hands, legs, and all." "Something for the prospective bride?" "Saucepans, pots, kettles?" "She's still only 11." "...and 4 months." "I thought she was 17 or 18." "Wow, she's a big one." "I wonder if I'd be that big if I ate the same stuff." "I bet she can lift a full bag of rice with no trouble." "What?" "!" "A blackie?" "!" "Where?" "There!" "Over there." "Let's go, Grandma." "Isamu?" "I think it's him." "That's dangerous." "Somethings going on by the look of it." "You can't do it." "You'll never reach the top." "Go on, let's see you do it." "Yeah, go on." "What the hell are you doing?" "Get down." "If you fall you can kill yourself." "Come down." "Can't you hear me?" "Get down here!" "They said I couldn't do it." "You shouldn't have done that." "Can you stand?" "Idiot!" "Veneration to Amitabha Buddha..." "They're more rough than Japanese kids." "Yeah, they're different." "Just think what they'll be like when they're adults." "Smuggling and gangs, all kinds of trouble." "Let's go." "We'll go ahead, you stay and enjoy it." "Let's all go." "Shall I hit him?" "Don't you dare!" "She's trying to be nice." "Aren't you, Kiku?" "You don't need to try and do that." "You're dreadful." "Don't take it out on me." "I was born this way." "I'm your daughter's kid so what can you expect." "Stop trying to change me." "How dare you..." "Come on." "Let's go." "Stop calling me blackie!" ""Yellowies"!" "Lord I'm tired." "I must have been heavy for you." "Kiku, go and pull a radish from the garden and make tea." "It's late." "You don't have to cook." "I need a quick rest first." "I'm so tired." "I'm sorry." "I'll help." "It's been a good many years since I went to the festival." "Well it's another memory to take to my grave!" "You're back then." "I thought I heard something." "The post came and they wanted this signed for." "Post?" "Where is it from?" "I can't see, can you read it to me?" "What are these initials?" "It's not from a relative then?" "There's a photo inside." "Foreigners." "This guy's kid?" "There's a picture of him with a girl." "They must be rich." "I wonder who they are." "Well, what does it say?" "Tomorrow?" "I'll read it to you later." "Was it wrong to ask?" "Well, no..." "What does it say?" "So they've decided on Isamu, have they?" "This is the person who says he'll take Isamu." "He's a farmer and the family are not shod of money." "You're sending Isamu to America?" "So they've decided they want Isamu, have they?" "They're so worried about kids they have a whole ministry." "This is news to me, but of course America ought to take them." "It's not just that as clear as that." "It's something to be properly considered." "We can't just drive them away, can we?" "You talk about the individuals but the seeds are foreign." "We just let them rent or borrow a field or two." "Seeds?" "What seeds?" "Be quiet." "Am I going to visit America?" "If you go you won't be able to come back." "Keep quiet." "I'll tell you later." "If you go you won't be able to come back." "If you interrupt the adults we can't talk." "I was thinking, there was such much fuss at just a village festival." "If they were with their own people no one would talk about them like that." "It's different from when they were babies, and it will get harder and harder." "Kiku and Isamu might start taking their anger out on you." "You think it will all be fine if they go to America, but I read the papers." "The discrimination between white and black is terrible in America." "People say blacks stink and spit on them." "It happens even among the soldiers here on the bases." "The seed is from over there and should be returned." "It's not as though they're pumpkins or something." "With humans it's women who have the eggs." "It's not the man who has them." "Gosh, is that right?" "Well I'm not as clever as someone like you who works in a factory, but what about the ancestors?" "And I'm not sure descendants will be too happy having some black show up either." "Since the Potsdam Declaration this talk of ancestors and lineage is old fashioned." "You mean the new constitution, not the Potsdam Declaration." "Anyway the happiness of the children has to be the priority." "If they're brought up by a rich family they may be able to go to university." "I'd like to go." "If you want to go then go." "I'd like to go." "You're pretty black yourself so that would suit you fine." "I'm not changing the subject," "But there's no land in Japan." "This is what happened with you." "Being the second son forces you to spend your whole life as a tenant." "If Kiku and Isamu have space to grow you can't say anything." "Right." "A woman's knowledge is shallow" "What Kiku and Isamu need most is affection." "It's a foreign country where they know nobody at all." "Grandma Shige here is their only relation." "But I don't have long left to live..." "I say that Japan must take responsibility for kids born in Japan." "How stupid can you be thinking they'll be happy just by going to the United States." "Well haven't you've got a lot to say!" "Your veins are standing out!" "You can talk like that at the local youth group!" "Spitting all over me like that..." "Anyway, let's eat the radish." "I'm not saying that things will be perfect just by going there." "I feel like I'm in a maze and I have no idea what to do." "I'm just saying that it's no heaven of freedom, and there's serious prejudice." "I'm just asking what's more important, affluence or affection?" "You stupid cow!" "Don't quarrel." "Kiku, do you want to go too?" "If I go I'll come back when I have been to university and become someone important." "You'll be an American kid if you go." "You don't need to come back." "Well, at least you've got one sorted out!" "Isamu's still little, he was easy to 'sort out'." "It's very difficult with girls when they get older." "If Kiku goes now it will be tough on her grandma." "You mean finding her a husband..." "I don't know what to do." "I had planned to ask the convent to grant her postulancy." "Kiku becoming a nun?" "So maybe a priest..." "I have to go home and feed the baby." "But I'm making tea." "It's late." "You don't have to go." "Sorry for all that." "Isamu, wake up." "Outside, pee outside." "Put the mosquito netting up for him." "Kiku, what are you doing?" "You must be worn out." "You must be hungry." "Isamu ate so much we don't need to wake him." "Kiku, do you want to go to the United States?" "I raised you and Isamu just as if I'd fed you with my own milk." "I don't want to let either of you go." "But rather than eating this cold rice." "You said that cold rice would make me beautiful." "You said it would make my skin whiter!" "That's what I was told when I was a girl." "I just ate lots and got fat." "Peasants want their kids to be tall and fat." "Why make me a nun and not Isamu as well?" "I've never seen a male nun." "Just leaving me behind." "When you get a cat, everyone says you should have a male." "And the females are always leftover." "I thought that it would be better for you if you went..." "I don't want to go to America." "There's persecution." "But what will you do when I'm gone, how will you survive?" "You poor thing." "Then Isamu should go, it might be good and you can find out." "Right?" "I don't know." "When I think about the future I just know I can't die until you are sorted out." "[Kiku starts a famous Actor's catch phrases to change the subject]" "If you make silly voices at night the snakes will come and get you!" "[Kiku continues with the phrases to avoid engaging with the topic]" "Veneration to Amitabha Buddha..." "I'm really tired." "I'm so full of fluid after the tea." "Will I become a cow do you think?" "The 13:05 train will arrive shortly" "Passengers please check you have all your belongings with you." "This train is for Koyama, and connects at Utsunomiya with the express for Tokyo." "The train is now pulling in to the station." "When you get there be careful of the different water and don't drink except from the tap." "And do what you're told." "There they are." "Thank you for coming." "When you get there send us a letter, OK?" "Don't forget, alright?" "Good luck and take care." "Tell me a lot about what it's like." "Don't ever lose that waistcoat Kiku knitted for you." "When you get there send a photo." "Thanks for arranging everything." "Eat this on the journey." "I'm not going." "You'll get hurt!" "Look out!" "You'll get hurt!" "If you don't want to then come back." "I'm coming back." "I want to go back!" "I want to go back!" "Kiku!" "Grandma!" "[She sings first 2 verses of the famous song Otomi-san...] [...a former lover discovers Otomi who he thought was dead... ] [he too bears scars but doesn't regret it]" "[It is based on characters in a famous kabuki play called 'Kirare Yosa'] [there is love at first sight...] [...and a past love revived]" "That's good." "She could make something of that talent." "You'll have to put the baby down." "Where's the kid from?" "This one?" "It's the Momoya family's kid." "That's one of the dances that troupe of actors did when there was that show in my barn." "That's where I learned it." "She's foreign and yet she's really good." "It's strange, isn't it?" "Do some more." "Want a drink?" "Seems you know how to drink!" "You're getting rather excited." "What will she end up like?" "It's a scan] thought." "She's pretty good with the booze." "It's because their bodies are different." "She's pretty good with the booze." "I feel all bubbly." "Of course you do." "So that's sake." "It's my first time to try it." "It doesn't taste good." "OK, I'll do another bit." "Maybe I'll do the one she did last night." "Here we go." "Rice stalks bow before the wind and people bow before money.." "[Sings a famous song about travelling actors and transitory fame... ] [the song references the snow-white skin of Yukino the actor, and the girl's weeping for him]" ""Urenokori!" [Unsold goods]" "Crow, why are you squawking?" "There's one of those black ones in our village." "She's got a big ass..." "Crow!" "Here she comes." "You little brat." "Call yourself a girl?" "The teacher's here." "They were saying stuff about me again." "Why were you off school?" "It's Sunday." "Your gran is pretty bad then?" "She's in bed." "Because you weren't coming to school" "I thought I'd come and see what was happening." "And you're with the travelling actors." "Come with me a moment." "Come to school tomorrow." "I don't want to." "I understand why, after having the Urenokori sign pinned to your back." "You need to get serious and prepare to get some kind of job." "What do you want to be?" "I don't know." "What do you want to be?" "You should decide." "Why?" "Why?" "You'll have to earn money in order to eat." "Women thinking they need to marry in order to eat is old fashioned." "You need to live in a new way." "Why lust me?" "It's not just you." "What do you want to be?" "I want to be a good mother." "Of course you do." "I've got no chance of being married though." "You don't need to think about that now." "I thought it wasn't anything to do with me." "I'm Japanese, aren't I?" "Yes, you're a child of Japan." "So why am I black?" "Well..." "See, you're trying to avoid the subject." "It's not such a big deal." "You smell of sake, are you drunk?" "Surely you haven't..." "Of course I'm not." "Look..." "You have the same skin colour as your father." "I know." "I was told he was kind and a good man." "Apparently he was really fond of me." "Grandma told me." "But he ended up going back to America." "Why are some people white and some black?" "Well it's not that white is good and black is bad." "If you live a good life decent people will accept you for it." "That's too hard to understand." "Then study more." "You could get reasonably good grades easily." "You're top at sports and games." "You've got a warm personality and you can be gentle." "Everyone has something special that nobody else has." "You just need to work at it." "But people say all sorts of stuff about me." "What do they say?" "They say my ass is huge and that I wiggle it." "When you're an adult that's what happens." "It's a symbol of a woman's health." "I don't want to be an adult." "I don't want to be bigger." "What are you talking about?" "You can't be a good mother without being an adult!" "I suppose not!" "So it's the convent?" "For Kiku?" "I'm not sure whether it is the convent or not." "It is not something that can be asked again and again." "You understand?" "What the spirit words say about Kiku is - if I may " ""Look down from the mountain and see the blooming flowers of the aubergine and Chinese melon."" "So it is the convent then!" "Why do you say so?" "The mountain is where the convent is and it looks down over the vegetable plots on the terraces." "It has to mean the convent." "It's like a riddle." "It has to mean the convent." "So it's time to send her at last." "Flowers blossoming means to make a profit." "That means the convent will make money, doesn't it?" "She's not back!" "Who?" "She's not back!" "Your baby." "You were looking after her!" "She's hardly going to come back on her own, isn't she?" "Where's she?" "I don't know." "What's going on?" "What have you done with her?" "Where did you put her down?" "She's really not there?" "Don't be stupid." "You were looking after someone's baby." "Idiot!" "Go and find her!" "I was checking the Nakamura truck." "Did the actors take her?" "The atelier is locked up and there's no baby there." "You said you'd make her smile!" "She drank some sake and got into a fight." "The actors said she was a novelty." "She was making the baby laugh by singing and dancing and it was so funny we teased her." "Actually I was talking with Kiku so I'm partly to blame." "Forgive me!" "It's not something that you can just say sorry for!" "She only managed to have a kid for the first time at 40, no wonder she's angry about losing it." "So true..." "But I put her in the truck that was here." "Truck?" "Why didn't you say so straight away?" "Well I can't remember exactly..." "Forgive me." "Whose truck was it?" "Actually, now I think about it there was a truck from the market in town." "The town?" "That's a long way off." "What can we do?" "They may not notice." "We chased Nakamura to try and reach his truck, but he headed off west, not south." "Where did you put her?" "Not here at any rate!" "It seems the truck is carrying her into town." "Lend me the bike." "Go and see." "OK, I'm off." "Leave it to me." "What does she think this is?" "She's out of control." "When the actors are in town the children all get worked up." "How dare she lose someone's kid and then say "leave it to me"." "Please forgive us Mrs. Hiro." "I thought she was lonely." "I got her to mind the kid as she's been unhappy." "I just heard there was a bit of a fuss about the kid over the way." "The police told her to come and pick up the baby, is that true?" "That's good." "It's turned out OK, hasn't it?" "Are they angry?" "Mrs. Hiro and the others?" "Where on earth did Kimie go?" "She's at the house." "There was quite a stir." "What was the fuss?" "Did something happen to the baby?" "They say I'm shameless." "They said I was horrible." "That I did it all deliberately." "It's going to make me look even worse, isn't it?" ""The problem of entrenched prejudice against blacks only one year after Little Rock..." "legal change alone is insufficient..."" "I'm no good." "That's why I'm not liked." "No you aren't." "You're a good kid." "A dress?" "Can I see?" "It's a home-made one." "It's for Gonjiro's kid Tai." "This is what you call elegant." "What a lovely smell." "I wonder what Isamu's doing now." "The actors must put on a whole box of white at a time." "Hey there big boy." "Want to see some more?" "What?" "There's more to see..." "What are you doing?" "Shake it, wiggle it." "Do you fancy a little bit of "private consultation"?" "Stop it." "It's creepy." "You naughty man!" "Look at yourself, ghost." "Horrible." "It's because of that horrible make up." "Take it off." "It's because I'm bad." "Off With it." "Ah, here she is." "What are you doing mucking around?" "They say you did it deliberately." "Did you?" "This case is a bit too strange to be put down as a coincidence." "I've been asked to investigate it." "She must have reported it." "She says I did it deliberately?" "Yes, she does." "Why did you put her on a vehicle?" "You must have known it would drive off." "It's a pretty wicked thing to do, or a prank." "The kid came back unharmed so that's the main thing." "The kid won't feed properly and she has a fever." "Her life is in danger!" "Did she have a fever?" "Yes, but only a little bit." "Did she have a fever?" "It's because you act as if you don't give a damn." "I'm just 'cool' because my cold is better now." "You cheeky..." " Kiku!" "She's got utterly no sense of guilt it seems." "You have to apologise for what you've done wrong." "You say really hateful stuff for a child." "Who did I get that from, then?" "No wonder your gran gets so angry." "You should show the right attitude and be apologetic for what you've done." "She's very stubborn, and that's bad." "Apologise." "Apologise to the policeman." "You caused all that running around..." "You're outrageous!" "Don't worry Mrs. Kawada, if she gets out of control we can have her put into a facility." "What sort of facility?" "He said they have a place for mixed race kids only." "It's a sort of orphanage." "See you soon." "I'll be coming by from time to time to see how things are going." "Kiku, home!" "I'm sorry for all the trouble." "You'd better hurry up and get her into the temple." "The convent's not going to accept her anyway." "It's not something to laugh about." "She can't get married nor can she go into a temple." "Unthinkable!" "No soul will make it to paradise by her reading sutras." "Even if they go to India." "But Buddha came from India, so there is a connection." "What?" "I see." "That's right!" "Even if Buddha came from India I don't get what the connection is with Kiku." "The shamaness told us today that the spirits say she should become a nun." "They did!" "The shamaness might channel the gods but making Kiku religious is a ridiculous idea." "Why is it ridiculous?" "All I said was that that was what was said." "Your so called logic make me so angry." "It's your nitpicking 'logic' that always gets things in a mess." "I'm asking by what dubious means heaven has decided that Kiku be religious." "I don't give a damn." "You have the luxury to argue about it all you want." "We live next door and we have to get involved in sorting this out every time there's a problem. it involves us!" "I've just sorted out one kid, and now it's one thing after another like chestnuts bursting by the fire." "I don't know what to do." "Hello, anybody home?" "Good evening." "Excuse me but is this where the mixed race child lives?" "Please let us take your picture." "What's all this about?" "I'm from the newspaper." "We heard about the disappearance of the baby." "The baby was found." "Well, yes I know." "I heard there's a mixed race kid here and wanted to take a photo." "Are you Kiku Kawada?" "It would look rather good and very Japanese with the pots in the background like that." "Yeah, we can do something interesting with that." "No, there's nobody that you want here." "What are you planning to do?" "Why are planning to put it in the paper?" "She's done nothing wrong." "I really don't like this." "They're taking pictures of me again." "I missed it." "You should have been quicker." "Let us have 2 or 3 shots..." "You're being unpleasant, I told you there's no mixed kid here, and I've already told you no photographs!" "Don't move!" "Look this way." "Make them give it back." "I don't want to be photographed." "If you get involved in a scandal..." "They've taken a photo." "Give it back." "Give it to me." "A photo of you massaging your Grandma's shoulders would be good." "You'll just make trouble for us with our neighbours." "Give it back!" "Don't get violent." "Please leave." "We'd like your help and cooperation." "What's going on?" "I've told you several times no." "Why do you keep taking photos?" "Are you going to make some spectacle of her in the paper?" "Please put yourself in her position." "If you need photos you can photograph me as much as you like." "There's no article to be had with grandma's photo!" "It's not just the photo." "Let's come back later." "Excuse us." "I'll make them give it back." "Get away from here, quickly!" "What's happening?" "Kiku!" "If you go outside they'll photograph you for sure." "Why did you stop me?" "Listen." "I need you to listen to me." "I'm not angry." "But I think you should go to the convent." "Even if I'm not around any more if they will look after you." "Train, and if you really don't want to do it, after the training you'll have time to decide on something different." "I'm not saying you must do but you should at least try it." "If you're not so clever you can just learn the one sutra." "Buddha came from India." "He's like you." "If you look at your head you can see the proof." "I noticed at the bathing ritual." "Whose bathing ritual?" "The Buddha's." "Whose bathing ritual?" "Kiku." "Kiku." "You fool, oh Kiku, you fool." "What made you want to do something like this?" "Why?" "You were going to leave me..." "What were you thinking?" "All my hard work to bring you up." "Taking this old rope." "It broke." "Why?" "Why?" "It broke." "It broke?" "Of course." "You're heavy." "That was such an ungrateful thing to do." "I don't want to be any bigger." "Just because you don't want to get bigger?" "It's the way you're made." "You can't change that." "Come on then." "Have you hurt your leg?" "If you're not hurt..." "Of course." "Is that what frightened you?" "It's no big deal." "Kiku, you've become an adult." "It's evidence that you're a woman." "It's something mothers cook red bean rice for and celebrate." "It means you're not a child any more." "You're really a grown up now." "I'm not sending you off anywhere." "But if you're going to be with me, you'll have to be able to do the farm by yourself." "Farming is hard and I didn't want to make you do that." "But if you can learn to farm properly that would be my greatest relief." "If you're going to do it... do it properly" "So you can be proud of yourself." "OK?" "OK." "Right, off you go to school then." "Actually stay with me today." "You know the upper wheat field?" "I'll show you how to tend it properly." "Skipping school?" "Pay them no mind." "They're just little boys." "OK." "I'm too old to mess around with you like that any more." "Huh?" "..." "THE END" "Starring" "Emiko Takahashi as Kiku" "George Okunoyama as Isamu" "Tania Kitabayashi as The Grandmother" "Kouji Kiyomura as Seijiro and Aiko Asahina as Kimie"