The Prisoner of Sakura

The Prisoner of Sakura (Japanese: ソローキンの見た桜, Hepburn: Sorokin no mita saka) (Russian: В плену у сакуры, V plenu u sakury) is a 2019 Japanese war film directed by Masaki Inoue. A joint Japan-Russia co-production, the movie is based on the true story of a prison camp in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, during the Russo-Japanese War.[1][2]

The Prisoner of Sakura
Film poster
Kanjiソローキンの見た桜
RussianВ плену у сакуры
Directed byMasaki Inoue
Screenplay byMasaki Inoue
Shunsuke Katori
Produced byYumiko Masuda
Irina Inoue
Keisuke Shimizu
Hitoshi Endo
Starring
CinematographyTomoaki Iwakura
Music byHiroyuki Onogawa
Ivan Sintsov
Alim Zairov
Distributed byKadokawa Pictures
Heisei Project
Release date
  • March 22, 2019 (2019-03-22) (Japan)
Running time
111 minutes
CountriesJapan
Russia
LanguagesJapanese
Russian
Box office$1,635

Plot

In the present day, a journalist named Sakurako Takamiya works for a local TV station. She researches into the Russian prisoners of war cemetery that local students keep clean. Her boss Shiro Kurata tells her about a letter from Russian Army officer named Alexander Sorokin, which was addressed to a nurse named Yui Takeda. They travel to Russia to look into Sorokin's diary.

In 1904, during the Russo-Japanese War, Yui takes care of the injured Sorokin at a prisoner of war camp in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, Japan. At first, Yui hates Sorokin, because her younger brother died in the war. Her feelings change, as they fall in love under difficult circumstances.

Cast
  • Junko Abe as Yui Takeda/Sakurako Takamiya
  • Rodion Galyuchenko as Alexander Sorokin
  • Yoko Yamamoto as Kikue Takamiya
  • Aleksandr Domogarov as Captain Vasily Boysman
  • Andrei Dementiev as Alexander Svyatopolk-mirsky
  • Naomasa Musaka as Yukichi Takeda
  • Hana Ebise as Naka Takeda
  • Setsuko Kaida as Take Takeda
  • Ivan Gromov as Alexey Krushinsky
  • Issey Ogata as Commandant Kono
  • Takumi Saitoh as Shiro Kurata
  • Jtarô Sugisaku as TV cameraman
  • Rii Ishihara

Reception

The movie was screened at the opening of the Ehime International Film Festival pre-event on March 15, 2019. After being pre-released at a movie theater in Ehime Prefecture from the following 16th, it was released nationwide from 22nd. According to a survey by Kogyo Tsushinsha, it won first place in the mini theater audience mobilization ranking on March 22 and 23. In November 2019, the movie was released in 200 movie theatres across Russia.[3][4]

At overseas film festivals, it was screened at the out of competition section of the 41st Moscow International Film Festival on April 24, 2019. It was screened in the competition section of the 12th Orenburg International Film Festival held in Orenburg, Russia from August 23 to 28, and won the Audience Grand Prix Special Award. On November, the movie won the Russia-Japan Friendship Contribution Award at the Russian Overseas Film Festival.[5][6]

References
  1. "The Prisoner of Sakura". jfdb.jp. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  2. "ソローキンの見た桜". amuse-s-e.co.jp. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  3. Arielle Busetto (April 16, 2019). "'The Prisoner of Sakura': A Tale of Different Cultures in a Time of War". japan-forward.com. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  4. "A screening of a spectacular love story, "The prisoner of sakura", followed by a talk show featuring its producer and author!". hiff.jp. September 30, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  5. Анатолий Кошкин (September 30, 2019). "Цветущая сакура или развесистая клюква?". regnum.ru. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  6. "В Японии начался показ российско-японского фильма "В плену у сакуры"". tass.ru. March 22, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
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