Abandoned by his mother, Kenji scrapes out a meager existence doing odd jobs, including driving bar hostesses and their customers home. Besides this, he cares for the sister of an incarcerated friend and a young illegal immigrant. Eventually, his life reaches a turning point.
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Blue endlessness. Connections to Helpless and Eureka, watching those films first before this is recommended. The return of the bunny-shaped box. The wonders of bubbles. Frantic cuts. After the tragedy (Aoi Miyazaki). After teenage angst (Tadanobu Asano and Kaori Tsuji). Familial love is complicated. The places that we've been to are known by the birds. Waiting for it (indefinite).
This is a direct sequel to HELPLESS and the final part of Aoyama’s Kitakyushu Saga! I think as a stand-alone film this would possibly be mid, but when viewed as part of a trilogy it really hits home. The continuation of Kenji and Yuri’s story from HELPLESS is wonderful, but seeing Kozue again after the devastation of EUREKA makes this a vital watch for any fan!Tadanobu Asano’s performance is astonishing! He’s always great but he really seems invested here. The damaged soul hidden beneath the functioning adult really shines through, far more than his younger performance in HELPLESS. He was an established star at this point and it shows!Whilst the style and stories are mountains apart, this trilogy still really reminded me of Takashi Miike’s BLACK SOCIETY TRILOGY. Each film is so unique but the exploration of themes crossover beautifully. Shinji Aoyama was a real talent and it’s clear we lost him far too soon 😔
Kenji, abandoned by his mother, now try to look after an immigrant boy and make an effort to live a normal life. Then, he incidentally meet his long lost mother and must adjusting to the unfamiliar surroundings. In attempt to embrace his new beginning, he needs to overcome his resentment and disconcertment toward his mother; for the sake of his own stability and for the people he loves.Been liking how they used the telegraph shot into scenes, bizarre yet memorable. Though the emotions a bit lacking, but still adore the tangled plot with sentimental delivery through the unhappy characters. I wish they had a better ending, but then it will be the Happy Vacation instead of Sad Vacation, right? :))
Abandoned by his mother, Kenji scrapes out a meager existence doing odd jobs, caring for the sister of an incarcerated friend and a young immigrant before his life reaches a turning point.
Sad Vacation was directed by Shinji Aoyama in 2007, completing his Kitakyushu trilogy of Japanese dramas.
Sad Vacation was released in Japan on September 8, 2007.
Sad Vacation has a runtime of 136 minutes.
