Zebraman (2004)

Director:

Takashi Miike

Writer:

Kankurô Kudô (screenplay)

Release Date:

15 August 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Being a failure as a teacher and a familyman, Shinichi tries to escape everyday live by dressing up as "Zebraman"...

Plot Keywords:

Teacher | Superhero | Classroom | Suicide | Flying

Awards:

2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Shô Aikawa	...	Shin'ichi Ichikawa / Zeburâman
Kyoka Suzuki	...	Kana Asano
Atsuro Watabe	...	Oikawa at the Defence Agency
Yui Ichikawa	...	Midori, Shin'ichi's daughter
Koen Kondo	...	Segawa
Naoki Yasukôchi
Makiko Watanabe
Keisuke Mishima
Yu Tokui
Yôji Tanaka
Arata Furuta	...	Owner of Candy Shop
Kumiko Asô	...	Newscaster
Akira Emoto	...	Kani-Otoko
Yoshihiko Hakamada
Ryo Iwamatsu	...	Kanda

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Filming Locations:

Mitsukaido City, Ibaraki, Japan

Company:

Bingo Y.K.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: At the end of the movie, the Colonel (the military officer in charge of the task force that is investigating the alien invasion through out the movie) refers to President Bush in his phone call when the movie takes place in 2010 (two years after Bush's last term in office).

Quotes:

Shin'ichi Ichikawa: Striping evil!

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Ringu (1998)

If you believe in yourself, you can do anything.

When you talk about Takashi Miike, you usually bring up Graveyard of Honor, Bodyguard Kiba, Ichi the Killer, or Audition: films that feature horror and extreme violence, but that is not the whole of this great director.

There is also The Bird People in China or The Happiness of the Katakuris. Miike stretches himself as a director further than anyone I know.

He does it again with this film, which is a comic book like tale of a failure who is a teacher (Shô Aikawa), who becomes Zebraman. He first saves the day by defeating a local crab-like thug, but then he has to battle aliens.

The special effects are tremendous, and the story, while simple, has a great message for all.