69 Sixty Nine (2004)

Directed by: Lee Sang-Il | 114 minutes | comedy | Actors: Satoshi Tsumabuki, Masanobu Ando, ​​Yuta Kanai, Asami Mizukawa, Rina Ohta, Yoko Mitsuya, Hirofumi Arai, Hideko Hara, Ittoku Kishibe, Jun Kunimura, Kyohei Shibata

1969: the time of Vietnam, hippies, communism, big festivals and rebels. Even in Japan. Teenager Ken is quite impressed by all these things that seem to take place mainly overseas. The only Americans he sees in Japan are Americans in uniform, ready to be shipped to Vietnam. But even more than the zeitgeist, the hormones poor Ken are playing tricks: the photos from the big pop festivals impress him above all because women apparently undress spontaneously at such parties! Moreover, he has a crush on Matsui, the prettiest girl in school. She likes Bob Dylan and Simon & Garfunkel (or as she calls it: Simon or Garfunkel), and she is against the war in Vietnam. Together with his friends, the race opportunist Ken decides to organize a festival himself, and later to barricade the school, even if he has to enlist the help of a group of extremely boring communist schoolmates.

’69 Sixty Nine’ is a totally unpretentious movie, meant for entertainment only, and if you limit yourself to that, this movie will serve you well. No big themes, no lived emotions, no extensive character studies, no typical Asian silences, not even innovative forms of humour. Good thing, too. ’69 Sixty Nine’ is nothing more and nothing less than a funny, charming and energetic film about a group of growing teenagers. Ken is the rebellious prankster, often gets into trouble, but also always manages to get out of it. Of course, there are the more sensible types and the nerds to come to Ken’s aid, or just act as a sidekick. Not every joke or scene is equally funny or effective, but the film has enough hilarious moments and highlights to speak of a successful film.

An example of a successful scene is the one in which Ken asks his father, an artist by trade, for permission to buy a Simon & Garfunkel LP, in order to impress Matsui. His father doesn’t fall for Ken’s charm offensive as he continues to paint, with one cat’s paw serving as a curious kind of brush. “You are the true artist”, says father, lovingly holding the cat…Director Lee Sang-Il, a Japanese of Korean descent, keeps the momentum going, using funny dialogues, lots of color, and scenes in which the fantasy especially Ken gets all the space. The actors, especially Satoshi Tsumabuki as Ken, play their part with pleasure, and that that happens is of course not unimportant for a film in which fun is central.

’69 Sixty Nine’ is not a particularly good film, but it succeeds in its purpose in an infectious way: 114 minutes of pure entertainment.