Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter

I wonder what the Coen brothers think to this film - besides the fact they apparently didn't credit the use of the scenes from Fargo. Not that anyone would mistake it for anything else. Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter has one of the most absurd setups for such an otherwise archetypal story. If there wasn't such a well known case of it actually happening, it would be difficult to swallow. It's simultaneously an American Dream and a culture rejection story that would make Ozu proud. In her pursuit for unimaginable riches, Kumiko neglects all aspects and expectations of her life, burning bridges every step of the way. It's a harsh examination of modern standards for young Asian women subverted with a 'gold rush' trope.

Kumiko is of course the least likely suspect for this journey, but that makes it more engaging than anyone else. While it feels like she gets out of situations by literally escaping without much of a scratch too often, its frequency paints a portrait of how far she's getting to each point of no return. In true Coen fashion, its fleeting supporting cast are memorably eccentric and provide much of the humour while lead Rinko Kikuchi provides the gravitas of the drama, taking the bizarre quest sincerely in every step. The photography is exquisite, contrasting the two worlds but putting America in the same tone and pace as Japan. Kumiko is a great tribute to the Coen's study of the corruption of money, building on it in the most out of the box way.

8/10

"It is my destiny." Kumiko (Rinko Kikuchi)

Kumiko, finding a hidden VHS copy of Fargo (1996), leaves Tokyo to go to N. Dakota to find the film's buried treasure. Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter, is as fine a fantasy as you will find outside of the Disney Empire, and more insightful. Based upon an urban legend about a Japanese tourist who froze to death seeking the treasure, a bit of the Coen brothers' fabulous story lingers in this equally endearing tale.

Kumiko's a lost 29 year-old soul looking for the end of the rainbow--a little like most of us with dreams or bucket lists just beyond our grasp—but we'll still dream of them or actually pursue the dream in the face of insurmountable odds. Kumiko at her job is distanced from her peers and an enigma to her boss, who lets her go with the company credit card because she is depressed, and he needs to fill her "office lady" spot with a younger model.

As she's reminded along her journey, the film Fargo is just fiction, and the town not a pleasant time to be in winter. Yet, Kumiko persists with help from a kindly old lady (Shirley Venard), who would rather take her to The Mall of America, and deputy sheriff (director Zellner), whose motives are pure as the driven snow that covers the land. That snow gradually overcomes every scene with purity and menace, a blank slate upon which her dream can come true and nature, human and otherwise, can send her to oblivion if it wishes.

Looking a little like Red Riding Hood, she's the opposite of realists, who see Kumiko's folly yet cannot stop her drive to get to Fargo and the buried loot.

The film is a Seinfeld variant because nothing happens except the most profoundly simple occurrences strengthening Kumiko's resolve and making us believers in her Quixote-like quest. For the lost Tokyo soul with only a pet bunny rabbit as Panza-like friend, Kumiko seeks to fulfill her fantasy, the naysayers be damned. (She likens herself to a Spanish Conquistador.) She hurts no one, and when at last she smiles, you know her quest is valuable only to her, a symbol of her achieving something in life to set her apart from boring normalcy.

This film works as allegory, applying to all who should hold on to their dreams if only for themselves. Otherwise, it's a delightful tale acted perfectly, a treat to please our fancy and remind us about private dreams that keep us going.

An introverted, heavily antisocial woman in Japan sees Fargo, the Coen Brothers film about a couple of gangsters failing at a job, and in the process hiding and losing a briefcase full of money. Fair enough, but the fun and the story start when she becomes fixated on the fact that surely this must be a true story and there's a real treasure somewhere on the side of a North Dakota road just waiting for her.

Kumiko is a bizarre story, as you have probably already surmised. Rinko Kikuchi, most known for Pacific Rim, plays the lead here, and she absolutely sells the character. She is the epitome of a square peck in a round hole and it's at times painful to see her trying to surmount the obstacles of everyday life that we take for granted. And a lot of the mystery of the film comes from wondering how she ended up like this and just how deep her condition goes. There's a very good scene near the beginning where she meets an old friend, who greets her like any other high school friend you have not seen for years, and you realize that surely Kumiko was not always like this. Something happened.

But the real treats start rolling when Kumiko decides to follow her only true passion and buys a plane ticket to America. The rest cannot be really talked about without spoiling the story, but trust me that it's just as surreal as Fargo at its best and, more often than not, even more so.

Plus, the ending, which is just about perfect. The only way this kind of story could really end.

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter is an experience. Its reach is perhaps greater than its grasp, but it's still a movie I'd definitely recommend for its sheer ambition and uniqueness.

At age 29, Kumiko is an isolated depressive working in an office position that's usually reserved for younger Japanese girls that are filling their time before finding a husband and moving on. With no ambitions to follow suit, after finding a water-damaged VHS copy of the Cohen Brother's 1996 film, 'Fargo', she becomes obsessed with finding the money-filled suitcase buried by Steve Buscemi's character and stitches together her own treasure map of the North Dakota tundra. Likening herself to a conquistador, she sets off on a journey to the 'New World' on a hunt for buried treasure via less-than legal means. The film is slowly paced but the humor never misses the mark and its unique tone and style is absolutely beautiful. The story hinges on Rinko Kikuchi's ('Pacific Rim' / 'The Brothers Bloom') performance which keeps even the lulls in the narrative interesting.

Viewers are asked to identify with the Coen Brothers' fictional "Fargo" and the reality of the Zeller Brothers' "Kumiko" (Rinko Kikuchi of Babel). Our leading lady on a treasure hunt for something we all crave – what we want.

Kumiko is insulated from the rest of the world through solitude, Her character cannot subscribe to Japanese societal norms and the journey is like many: weathering professional and personal criticism for not measuring up to the public barometer. She is hungry for the smallest dollop of approval. Frosty comrade pressures and a personal friend with child make the tiny Single made to believe she does not measure up. Even Mother is disappointed that she is still not married, a Japanese custom that girls are to wed by 25 or live at home.

Yet, our actress ventures out alone to find little gems wherever she goes, small hidden treasures that strengthen thoughts of another journey. She identifies best with her bunny Bunzo (Rabbit - symbol of rebirth and innocence). Emotionally drained, Kumiko cannot stay in a world that punishes her for not attaining expected behaviours. Mistaking make believe for real life, our disillusioned lead leaves native Japan penniless and fixated, but armed. She encounters Americans who unknowingly assist in her adventure. Blanketed in determination, our heroine explores self-abandonment, only to be rescued from the cold with local hospitality.

All this happens against a constant, white background of the silver screen, the Japanese symbol of death. This film leads viewers to decipher what is "not" real and what is. This film is a myth of fortune and the pursuit ... of what we each want. After watching, we may all realise we have been living a dream, maybe other's dreams … and not our own. Her future may be someone else's chaos.