Sinking Of Japan

Sinking Of Japan
Director: Shinji Higuchi
96 minutes
2.39:1

Malaysia is a country where the worst natural disasters are land slides, flooding and toll hikes. They don't quite compare to what Japan can endure from just the movements of Earth's tectonic plates: earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis. Sinking Of Japan details all three disasters in one movie.

Reiko Abe, played by rising actress Kou Shibasaki, rescues Toshio Onodera, played by Japanese pop star Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, from a fireball that was a result of the latest series of earthquakes in Japan. Soon, an American geologist briefed the Prime Minister of an impending disaster: Japan will completely disappear off the face of the planet in 50 years. Saori Takamori, played by Mao Daichi, who is the Minister of Crisis Management and Disaster Prevention seeks confirmation of this theory by consulting a geoscientist, Yusuke Tadokoro, played by Etsushi Toyokawa. Yusuke, who happens to be Saori's ex-husband, soon discovers that the series of earthquakes Japan is experiencing will culminate in the country sinking in less than a year.


So why is it fair and unfair to describe Sinking Of Japan as a disaster movie? It fairly describes it because by design the centerpieces of disaster movies are their special effects sequences. But it is unfair to describe this movie as just another disaster movie because most of the expositional scenes have emotional resonance, making them fairly important to the success of the film's climactic end.

Like Deep Impact by Mimi Leder, Shinji Higuchi has crafted a fairly entertaining and educational film about what would happen if such a catostrophic event occur. Shinji, who only has directed one feature film before this, and screenwriter Masato Kato had to write the script based on Sakyo Komatsu's popular sci-fi novel from 1973, the movie adaptation of the book and modern scientific findings. Reportedly the first adaptation had more depth when compared to the book than the updated version. Still, Shinji ably uses the four main casts and several supporting characters while keeping his eye focused on the big picture which is to stress the impact these events have on this small group of people.


The cast for the most part did their job well. Etsushi as the scientist didn't have much to do but worry about the effect of the tectonic movements. Mao on the other hand has a more commanding role that examplifies the changing dynamics of Japanese political office as the landscape itself is being reshaped. The love story between Kou and Tsuyoshi is underdeveloped. This is highlighted even more when their story reached its pinnacle in the movie. It would have been more interesting if director Shinji shows the contrast between the four actors' relationships. The rest of the casts shows the flexibility of the Japanese, or for that matter any nationality, in making the best of the worst kind of a situation.

The cinematography is striking, showing the beauty of Japan and the beautiful disaster that strikes later. Some of the more beautiful shots are the destruction of Japan as seen from space. Credit must be given to all the special, practical and visual effects technicians who made this film exciting. Pulling all of this off with a budget of just US$20 million, it is clear that shooting with High Definition cameras instead of film has its financial advantages.


The score by Taro Iwadai is minimalistic though there is a theme music running throughout the film. The sound design and mixing is very good though its quality can't be assessed due to drop-outs in the digital sound during the press screening. It could be caused by either a dirty or damaged film print, or improper projector maintenance.

If there was such an event occuring, other countries will also be affected by the movement of the tectonic plates or the measures the Japanese took to save their country. However, this movie is not about Japan saving the world so a worldwide view would be irrelevant. Sinking Of Japan succeeds as a reminder and as an escapist entertainment.



Sinking Of Japan has been recut for Malaysia! According to the film's distributor here, the running time is only 96 minutes. The Japanese cut is 136 minutes, a full 40 minutes longer which is an equivalent of two reels and a half. So there was indeed a substantial amount of story that was omitted. While this move is not censorship, it feels like one. Malaysian audiences are cheated of the full Japanese cut. The film distributor must take responsibility in informing audiences that this is the 96 minute version of the movie on its posters.