Revolution+1

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Revolution+1
Directed byMasao Adachi
Screenplay by
StarringSoran Tamoto [ja]
CinematographyKenji Takama
Edited byTomoko Hiruta
Music byOtomo Yoshihide
Release dates
  • September 26, 2022 (first cut)
  • December 24, 2022 (final)
Running time
  • 50 minutes (first cut)
  • 75 minutes (final)
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
Budget¥7 million

Revolution+1 is a 2022 Japanese experimental film directed by Masao Adachi. It is a semi-fictionalized account of the life of Tetsuya Yamagami, the main suspect in the assassination of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe. The film was produced rapidly in the aftermath of Abe's assassination in July 2022: the first draft of the screenplay was written in three days, filming was completed in eight days, and an unfinished 50-minute cut of the film was screened on September 26, 2022, the day before Abe's state funeral. The final cut of Revolution+1 was released in Japan on December 24, 2022.

Synopsis[edit]

Revolution+1 follows the life of Tatsuya Kawakami, a semi-fictionalized version of Tetsuya Yamagami, the suspected assassin of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe. The film covers major events in Tatsuya's life, including the suicide of his father, his family's inability to pay for treatments for his brother's blindness, and his mother's membership in the Unification Church. After his mother's donations to the church leave the family in financial ruin, Kawakami is compelled to assassinate Abe for his ties to the organization.

Cast[edit]

  • Soran Tamoto [ja] as Tatsuya Kawakami
  • Satoko Iwasaki as Tatsuya's mother
  • Yusuke Takahashi [ja] as Tatsuya's father
  • Futa Muraki as Tatsuya's brother
  • Ria Maesako as Tatsuya's sister

Production[edit]

Revolution+1 is directed by Masao Adachi, a former member of the Japanese Red Army who emerged as an experimental filmmaker in the 1960s.[1][2] Adachi stated that he was inspired to make a film about the Abe assassination after learning that it was not an act of political terrorism, but rather that the alleged assassin "acted as an individual executioner who came to his own decision [...] rather than being directed by a political organization or social movement."[3] He stated that he wished to make the film to "depict the background of one young man", and that he did not see the film as specifically sanctioning or condemning the assassination.[4]

The screenplay was written by Junichi Inoue [ja], who completed the first draft in roughly three days.[1] Kenji Takama served as cinematographer, and the music was composed by Otomo Yoshihide, who completed the soundtrack in two hours.[3] Tatsuya Kawakami is portrayed by actor Soran Tamoto [ja]; Inoue noted that it was difficult to find an actor affiliated with an agency willing to take the role, but that Tamoto was a freelancer and thus not bound by an agency.[5] Tamoto stated that he decided to join the film because he felt he "had a role to play in having the world confront" the assassination.[6]

Filming for Revolution+1 commenced in Tokyo in late August 2022, and concluded after eight days.[4][7] Adachi stated that he "felt a sense of urgency" to produce the film, and that he wished to create and release it "before the media was able to distort the situation and propagate the shooter’s criminal profile or their version of his grounds for this incident".[3] The film was produced on a budget of ¥7 million (US$63,781.32).[1]

Release[edit]

An unfinished 50-minute cut of Revolution+1 was screened at a dozen locations across Japan from September 26 to 29, 2022, coinciding with Abe's state funeral on September 27, 2022.[4][8] Adachi stated that he chose to release the film on this date specifically in reaction to the decision by prime minister Fumio Kishida to give Abe a state funeral, describing it as a "fraudulent attempt to promote Abe as a 'great' politician, when he was a political criminal who degraded democracy".[3] A screening at a theater in Kagoshima scheduled for September 29 was cancelled in response to protests.[4][9]

The final 75-minute cut of Revolution+1 was released in Japan on December 24, 2022.[6] The film had its United States premiere at e-flux Screening Room in Brooklyn, New York, on July 6, 2023.[2]

Reception[edit]

Eito Suzuki, an investigative journalist who covers the Unification Church, revealed in his book Who Was Tetsuya Yamagami that he informed Yamagami of the film's existence in correspondence he has maintained with him. While Suzuki praised the film's production efforts, he stated that he mentioned to Yamagami that he and his sister may find the artistic liberties taken by the film to be upsetting.[10]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Ishitobi, Noriki (September 26, 2022). "Film about Abe murder suspect to screen on day of state funeral". The Asahi Shinbun. Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "US Premiere: Masao Adachi, REVOLUTION +1". e-flux. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d Hirasawa, Go; Spigland, Ethan (April 2023). "REVOLUTION+1: An Interview with Masao Adachi". e-flux Journal. Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d "Film modeled on Abe shooting suspect draws controversy". The Japan Times. October 9, 2022. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  5. ^ "山上徹也容疑者を演じた〝３０歳俳優〟の覚悟 安倍氏国葬に合わせて劇場公開". Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). September 17, 2022. Archived from the original on May 26, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Kawase, Shinichiro (December 26, 2022). "Final version of film on ex-PM Abe's suspected assassin opens to early queue in Nagoya". Mainichi Shimbun. Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  7. ^ Ishitobi, Noriki (September 23, 2022). "山上容疑者モデルの映画を緊急上映 元革命家の監督「英雄視しない」". The Asahi Shinbun (in Japanese). Archived from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  8. ^ "日本が誇る稀代のシュールレアリスト・足立正生監督の最新作『REVOLUTION＋1』、描くは安倍晋三元首相暗殺犯の山上徹也容疑者！ 劇場公開に先駆け、ロフト系列ライブハウス他、全国ミニシアターでイベント上映決定！". Rooftop1976 (in Japanese). September 15, 2022. Archived from the original on May 24, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  9. ^ Kawase, Shinichiro (September 28, 2022). "Long line forms in Nagoya to see film modeled on ex-PM Abe's suspected assassin". Mainichi Shimbun. Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  10. ^ Suzuki, Eito (July 21, 2023). 「山上徹也」とは何者だったのか [Who was Tetsuya Yamagami] (in Japanese). Kodansha. p. 116. ISBN 978-4065328729.

External links[edit]

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