THE STORY – Two best friends since childhood, Kou and Yuta, run afoul of their disciplinarian principal, who has installed a draconian surveillance system after being the target of an elaborate prank. As the boys try to figure out how to align themselves within the increasingly oppressive education system, larger external forces summon further threats, including constant looming natural disasters.
THE CAST – ARAZI, Yuta Hayashi, Yukito Hidaka, Kilala Inori, Hayato Kurihara, Ayumu Nakajima, Shina Peng, PUSHIM, Shiro Sano, Makiko Watanabe & Masaru Yahagi
THE TEAM – Neo Sora (Director/Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 113 Minutes
Only a few moments into Neo Sora’s new drama “Happyend,” we see onscreen the words, “Something big is about to change.” For residents of near-future Tokyo, that “something” promises to be a disastrous earthquake for which the city has been preparing for years. For a group of high school seniors in their final weeks before graduation, however, that “something” may mean a whole lot more. The film’s remarkable ability to blend serious themes with elements of a teen comedy narrative is sure to keep audiences entertained and engaged.
“Happyend” marks the first narrative feature for director Sora, whose documentary “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus” earned raves last year. The center of that film, the final concert by Sora’s late father, was music, and so, with “Happyend,” music is once again a significant part of the film’s drive. A banger of an opening scene is set at an underground club, where underage pals Yuta (Hayato Kurihara) and Kou (Yukito Hidaka) are hiding away. The police quickly raid the joint, but as all the other patrons flee, Yuta, tellingly, stands motionless, mesmerized by the beats.
A love of music also links the boys to their best friends: Tomu (Arazi), who secretly plans to go to college in America, and the wiseguy fashion-plate Ata-chan (Yuta Hayashi), who is desperately trying to woo the strong-willed Ming (Shina Peng). It’s just a few weeks away from graduation, and the responsibilities of adulthood await, but Sora takes the time to remind us that, for now, they’re still just kids. For example, their principal’s bright new yellow sports car provides an irresistible target for Yuta and Kou, but their vandalism prank quickly yields serious consequences.
Seeking to maintain discipline, Principal Nagai (Shirō Sano) installs surveillance equipment, including a camera system in which each student’s face is linked to a code, which tallies demerits for each infraction. Sora uses the school as a model for his larger point about how authoritarians can use any excuse to crack down on a populace in the name of protecting them. Beyond the confines of the school, he creates a world where the president of Japan takes a similar course of action: denying freedoms to its citizens, all in the name of “earthquake safety.”
However, just bubbling under the surface is the racism inherent in the policy that would allow the government to discipline those they perceive to be “other.” Kou, for instance, is from a Korean family, so he naturally is under the most suspicion from Principal Nagai. That institutional prejudice finally leads Kou to political activism, a sit-in in Nagai’s office, which Sora sets against the nationwide protests raging in the streets just outside the school grounds.
Invasion of privacy, authoritarian surveillance, loss of freedoms…these are all themes that would seem to lend themselves to a first-rate thriller. Yet, somehow, Sora gets them all to work inside the confines of a teen comedy, making them land all the more effectively. Why it works is in part due to his care in grounding those thematic points in character. As an example, Kou’s political activism is sparked not just by his core beliefs but also by the presence of an attractive female activist who catches his eye. At the same time, his commitment to a cause threatens his longtime bromance with Yuta, who has no long-term plans and only lives for the moment.
Given his experience as a documentary filmmaker, one might expect Sora’s skill at telling a story visually, which he certainly displays to enormous effect in “Happyend.” What may be unexpected, however, is his ability to narratively weave a story, creating fully fleshed-out characters, blending the film’s serious themes into the storyline, and still keeping us wanting more. If somehow the film’s more serious global themes take a backseat to resolving the characters’ lives at the end, it’s a small price to pay for such a satisfying conclusion.
Anyone who has graduated from high school probably has fond memories of the last few weeks of senior year, as the friends you’ve made vow to stay together forever, even if most will separate to forge their path in the real world. Sora shrewdly uses that warm feeling of nostalgia to layer in his more serious points about freedom in the real world. “Happyend” gives you plenty to smile about as you’re leaving the theater, and even more to think about on the way home.
