I enjoyed this film much more than I expected even though the voices on the phone were obviously not those of trained actors. The main character James Furuta (Dann Seki) was marvelous and held my attention the entire time, no small feat.
As a Japanophile who lived many years in Japan, and hopes to return to live there permanently, I loved that the story focused on the interconnectedness of the Japanese-American community, which reminded me of life in Japan. And I loved the usage of old photos of Japanese-Americans appearing intermittently on the screen as the story progressed, representing some of the characters from the murder mystery rooted in past events, but would have preferred them in sharp focus before the film's end to make the characters come to life in the present.
Entertaining and something different than the usual murder mystery fare and all without vulgarity or bloody, violent scenes.
As a Japanophile who lived many years in Japan, and hopes to return to live there permanently, I loved that the story focused on the interconnectedness of the Japanese-American community, which reminded me of life in Japan. And I loved the usage of old photos of Japanese-Americans appearing intermittently on the screen as the story progressed, representing some of the characters from the murder mystery rooted in past events, but would have preferred them in sharp focus before the film's end to make the characters come to life in the present.
Entertaining and something different than the usual murder mystery fare and all without vulgarity or bloody, violent scenes.