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iohourtime · 8 months

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Bad Lands

Ando Sakura x Yamada Ryosuke

Nihon Eiga 107

Hashioka Neri, aka Neri (橋岡煉梨, ネリ) - Ando Sakura

Yashiro Jo, aka Joe (矢代穣, ジョー) - Yamada Ryosuke

A brief summary of the plot is that Neri and Joe lived in the lowest rung of society. They worked for Takajo* in a phone fraud ring. Takajo was the keeper of the potential marks and Neri was the leader of the ukeko (receivers) - the people who collect money from the victims but did not do the actual scamming. Joe just got out of prison and was introduced to work for Takajo by Neri. They came across a large sum of money and somehow got embroiled in an underworld war.

*I can’t find the pronunciation guide, so I think that’s how you say his name.]

(I don't have the actual magazine so I'm using movie stills they've released so far. Please let me know if you notice any errors.)

Sakura Ando, who played Neri in "Bad Lands", said, "I want Neri to be a main character who doesn’t leave much of an impression." It is rare for a heroine to have such an image in Japanese movies; giving off a dry coolness, Neri is at the center of the story where she is surrounded by those who want to trap her and those who will do anything to protect her, and these extreme feelings intermingle in a truly thrilling way. All of the characters with their own strong personalities left an impression on me, and the ensemble of the characters as a whole is wonderful because it is centered around a heroine who is a realist that is not a larger-than-life character that is usually found in [fiction].. With the help of the atmospheric setting of Osaka, the world of "lawless land" emerges, as the title "Bad Lands" suggests.

Speaking of "Bad Lands", the American film "Badlands" (1973) directed by Terrence Malick, which depicts a man and a woman's escape must have been on the director’s mind as well. Kansai's strong noir feel goes beyond typical Japanese cinema and reminds us of the emotionally restrained, adult oriented Western films. How did this worldview come about? We spoke with Sakura Ando and Ryosuke Yamada, who played siblings [in the movie].

-- First of all, I thought Neri's casual demeanor was great. Such heroines are rare in Japanese movies.

Ando: When I first read the script, I didn’t have an image of Neri as a strong protagonist, but someone who wasn’t memorable yet still left a whiff of her existence behind. Because she appeared among many impactful characters, it would be nice if I could play an unremarkable main character. When I first talked to the director, I told him my thoughts and he accepted it. After that, when I read the script, I really wanted to cherish the nuances of Neri’s words and her kindness that can be felt in little things.

-- Yamada-san re-teamed with Harada-san after “Moeyo Ken” (Baragaki: Unbroken Samurai). Joe seems like a grown-up version of Okita Souji in “Moeyo Ken”.

Yamada: I read how Director Harada [described the character] in an article after the film was finished [and thought], so that’s what it was (laughs). I decided before that if Harada-san called, I would be there. I think his set is something that can't be experienced these days. Although gradually, I’ve stopped being scolded, when I saw the director snappily say things that needed to be said to various people, leading to an intense set, I also felt tense.

*Apparently Director Harada has a reputation of being very stern and scary, but it sounds like it is not irrational yelling and more like someone who runs a tight ship?

Ando: It was my first time being part of the Harada team, and I heard that it was really scary, but when shooting started, I was shocked by how fun the Harada team was. It was very cheerful and light. It was flexible. When I read the script, I thought I had a script that was carefully crafted by the director.

Yamada: I think the reason the set was so cheerful this time was because of Ando-san. I think the trust the director had in Ando-san was amazing. I had never seen Director Harada directing with such a big smile (laughs).

Ando: When I said, "I'm scared to drive this Benz," he said, "Well, then Joe will drive." He would say on the spot things like, "Well, let's repeat this line" or "What you just did was interesting, let’s go with that".

Yamada: That's right. I think he's a director who really values the rawness of what happens on set. Harada-san himself is also enjoying what is born out of the set..

Ando: That's why when I was first approached by various departments, saying, "There are action scenes, this kind of scene, that kind of scene, and it is this kind of movie, what do you think?" But I told them, wait a minute, if you solidify all the details from the start like that, it could only become a movie you've seen before, and I also want to play Neri’s rawness more dynamically.. . For example, I felt that it was wrong for Neri to have sharp moves that are common in action movies. So when I got to the set, the director said, "It's okay, Neri doesn't need to do that kind of thing" (laughs).

Yamada: (laughs).

Ando: "Don't fight skillfully, just stay scared" (laughs). That's how he drew out the charm of the character that was born at that time. So it was a lot of fun. I felt the joy of acting with my whole body..

-- So you made use of rawness that was born on set. That's how the worldview of the movie was created.

Ando: That’s right. Another thing I remember well is that it snowed a lot during filming.

Yamada: It was during our shoot in Hikone in Shiga Prefecture. It was really amazing. When the director, Ando-san, and I left the hotel, I said "Wow!" without thinking. It was the heaviest snowfall in Hikone's history [since they started collecting the data]..

Ando: It was a heavy snowstorm with around 10 centimeters of accumulation, so it would be a shame not to make use of it in the movie. I said it would be nice to have a scene of Neri in the snow and the director said, "That's a good idea. Let's shoot!" This is it. (Showing a photo of the snow).

Yamada: Oh~.

Ando: Yama-chan, you couldn't go to the set, right?

Yamada: Yes. Our car couldn’t get there because of the heavy snow. I thought, “They are probably going to shoot in this snow! Wow!”

Ando: That's right, there was a cut with Neri in the snow.

Yamada: If it wasn't for Ando-san's words, the scene wouldn't have happened.

Ando: After we finished filming what was planned for that day, he said, "Okay, let's shoot this." The director and editor (Harada) Eugene-san assembled the scenes that were born out of this on the spot. Since my family also makes movies this way, I felt a sense of security. That’s how the Harada family feels like, and that’s how they do things. I think it's precisely because we have such a relationship of trust that he can say, "Let's go shoot this!" It was a good scene and I think that’s why this set is uniquely attractive.

Yamada: I think the fact that the director can say that right away is a testament to his trust in Ando-san. Also, as you mentioned earlier, the worldview that was born in the movie looked very natural, it was probably the worldview that the director was trying to create, for example, we were asked to overlap our lines.

Ando: Oh~ yes, we were going pon pon pon with the lines. It was that type of rhythm [we were going for] after all.

Yamada: I remember being told to go faster (when I said the lines) really well. People from Kansai speak at a fast pace and they tend to overlap, right? To be honest, I don't know what everyone was saying in the casino scene because they were all talking over each other (laughs).

Ando: (laughs).

Yamada: But I thought it felt real. I mean I don't bother to speak with pauses normally. Looking back now, I realize that the director was really looking for that sense of realism. That's why I think the reality of Kansai felt very alive and it formed the worldview [of the movie].

Ando: Yeah, yeah. When I first read the script, I thought there seemed to be many scenes commonly found in movies, but when we actually started shooting, each person worked hard to bring their characters to life in their scenes. The movie is set in the Nishinari area of Osaka and there are locals appearing in it as well.

Yamada: That's right.

Ando: I think that kind of thing was thorough. Also, there are a lot of charismatic veterans in this film.

Yamada: That's true.

Ando: It was a lot of fun working with those senpais and building up Neri from there. There's a scene where Mandala (Uzaki Ryudo) and I “go to battle” and I wanted to walk in a cool way, but Uzaki-san’s coolness was part of his essence.

-- It's the rock'n'roll aura, isn't it? Originally, he was part of the Downtown Boogie-Woogie Band.

Ando: Yes. It was amazing, I wondered how I could exceed such coolness, but I was like “ah~” at my lack of coolness (laughs).

Yamada: Not at all.

Ando: No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't do it.

-- Uzaki-san and Ando-san have a similar rock’n’roll vibe.

Ando: Oh, I'm happy to hear that.

Yamada: Yes, they’re really cool.

Ando: Namase (Katsuhisa)-san has an interesting way of adding nuances to the Kansai dialect.

Yamada: Ah~.

Ando: Namase-san said "Getsuyoubi no miko-san" as "Geccho hi no miko-san". I tried to imitate what he said. I think it's kind of nice that Takajo and Neri are naturally speaking in the same way. That's how I absorbed various things from the senpais and used them in my acting. Speaking of which, Yama-chan. Yama-chan was really amazing.

Yamada: Not really.

Ando: You know, it's different. It's really amazing for us to be able to work together. After I finished watching the movie, I said to the director, "Isn’t Yama-chan dangerously good?"

Yamada: No, I was not that good (laughs).

-- There is a scene where the two of you and Mandala did something violent to someone. It seemed that something surprising happened during the actual filming.

Yamada: That's right. It's the scene where the three of us are together.

Ando: In [the rehearsal] for the scene where we did something very violent, I had to make this person drink an alcohol called Spirytus*, but when I said, "Wow, I can’t do it," Yamada-kun said, "Well then, I'll do it."

*Per google, this Polish spirit is 76% alcohol. That will burn like crazy!

Yamada: That's right (laughs).

Ando: But when it came to the actual take, I gradually got on board and said “Yes, I'll do it” (laughs).

Yamada: In the end, Ando-san made him drink it (laughs). I was surprised when she suddenly did that during the actual take. I thought, “You’re really into it.”

Ando: (laughs).

Yamada: Because she will do something like that for the first time on set, the filming was really fun.

Ando: Another thing that was amazing was the scene with the hardcore dude.

Yamada: Haha. Hardcore.

Ando: We were taking down the hardcore dude. I talked about it a little bit earlier, but the fight choreography team came up with these cool actions. But taking into account Neri and Joe’s character, I wondered if “this cool action works”.

Yamada: Because it was the type of moves you see often in an action movie.

Ando: I thought the film suddenly became an action film, with cool action and all, but when I finally did it, it turned out to be pathetic action that looked like it was fluke.

Yamada: Have you seen such pathetic action scenes?

Ando: What pathetic moves are those? (laughs).

Yamada: Mandala and I were shouting threats and dragging a pipe chair, and I threw the bag that fell off it towards the enemy, but it hit Neri-nee (laughs).

Ando: Yes, yes (laughs).

Yamada: Isn't that kind of realistic? It’s like “Uh~, that happened”.

Ando: For that scene, the script had a note saying there was “bang bang” from the gunshots, but there was a problem with the prop gun we were using. So in the end, Uzaki-san, who played Mandala, just made the sound effect himself..

Yamada: He went "Bang bang" (laughs).

Ando: It was really cute. I think Mandala, Joe and Neri made the best trio.

Yamada: It was lame-cool, wasn't it?

-- It’s a set you want to keep working on, right?

Yamada: Really.

Ando: Yes. It really was.

Yamada: Yeah, it was fun.

-- Looking back on the shoot, please tell us what you’re thinking now.

Ando: When I was young, although it was rare, I had met characters who made me feel like they were showing rawness every second. It can’t help being fun to find things while filming. It’s like I was Mario going pepepepe~.

Yamada: You're invincible (laughs).

Ando: I don't know if I'm invincible (laughs). Mario had amazing jumping power in those times, but when I played Neri, I could jump twice as much as usual, and my body moved so much, it was super fun. I was really glad to be able to meet such a role on set in these days and ages. I felt joy!

Yamada: Of course, it was great playing Joe, but moreover, I was able to appear in Harada-san's and work with Ando-san playing the person closest to her, and that to me was the real treasure in my acting career. But above all, I was able to see Ando-san up close and personal, so I was the happiest ever.

-- I think that was reflected in the relationship between Neri and Joe. What can you say about this pair of siblings?

Ando & Yamada (looked at each other): Eh (laughs)?

Ando: I thought they were the strongest partners (laughs). Even though they were useless, they balanced each other out very well.

Yamada: That's right, In Joe’s mind, Neri was his favorite sister. He called himself a psychopath but he was able to love properly. He showed his feelings quite a bit, and when you read the movie’s pamphlet, you might think he was a cool guy, but...

Ando: He was not cool at all (laughs).

Yamada: He was a cheerful little brother (laughs). But if it was for his sister’s sake, he wouldn’t care about himself and he would get his hands dirty no matter how dangerous the situation was. In those scenes, the screws came off and well, he was crazy.

Ando: But on the other hand, a psychopath… I think Neri would think “that’s so not true”.

Yamada: That's right (laughs).

Ando: She thought he was just an idiot (laughs).

Yamada: True! People who think they are psychopaths are probably not psychopaths (laughs).

Ando: (Imitating Joe) Yes .

Yamada: Haahaha. Joe was just an idiot. A lovable guy.

Ando: That's why I was surprised by the cool Joe later in the movie; I was fascinated. That was really amazing.

Yamada: No, he was just an idiot (laughs).