Tokyo Cowboy

Ok. You do not expect much from a 1994 movie you have never heard of and is being given for free with the purchase of a bad magazine. Least while for strange developments in your life all of this happens to take place in Bilbao, Spain.

But this is a fine movie. A very good one. The plot flows very ...well... very fluidly. It goes surprising you on and on, but in a subtle, soft way.

At the end, you feel a lot of empathy for the naive Japanese guy, and, in my case, a deep love for Shelly... I can´t tell you more about it without spoiling it.

Watch it.

Nice quirky film that plays on different aspects of social and cultural stereotypes. A refreshing look at the passions that move the human heart, with a few interesting, if somewhat predictable, plot twists and a surprising ending.

I first watched 'Tokyo Cowboy' at a film festival in Tromsø, Norway, and at that time considered it one of the best films I have ever seen. Now, 12 years later, I have gotten the DVD (after a lot of struggle...) and re-watched it. The conclusion is the same, in spite of the many films I have seen in these 12 years. This is a top-ten for me. Delightful story which combines humor and depth. The much-more-talked-about 'Lost in Translation' does not come up to this one, but 'Translation' is of course not a bad movie.

One could say that the wisdom of 'Tokyo Cowboy' is a bit simple and obvious, yet these themes one cannot discuss and dwell over enough. To find oneself in this complex world, "the road in my heart" as the main character puts it, will never go out-of-date. Highly recommended, watch it! You will not be disappointed. Greetings from Oslo, Norway.

Different, fun and like life itself doesn't have an exact Hollywood outcome.

The main characters learns and teaches others. One of my favorite scenes is about the reason for taking off shoes before going into the house - it's basically so you leave the world and it's chaos outside your sanctuary and not to avoid getting dirt that can be vacuumed up later.

Also, when you put two different cultures together you learn a lot about each. The good and the bad. There is some basic dishonesty in our own culture and also many humorous sayings that arn't to be taking literally.

I also recommend renting Shall We Dance.

This is a perfectly balanced film. The timing is all right as it moves between tension and humor, sentiment and meaning, uncertainty and resolution. The movie never wastes its time to pull out tears or laughs from the audience. All the enjoyment flows out naturally and uncontrived. Nor is the director's artistry on parade. Rather the film's beauty is subtle and supportive. The cross-cultural clashes are much more bilateral and accurate than in the more acclaimed "Lost in Translation." Though the "coming out" theme is old, this handling of it is fresh; and the script is well written. The cast works very well together. I wish I could see more of them. I'd especially like to see some other of Hiromoto Ida's works. I also very much appreciated Anna Ferguson and Alec Willows in this.