I rented this movie after reading the words "Kyoto" and "1968" on the back of the DVD cover and had really no idea what to expect. After seeing the first 15 minutes I still had no idea where the movie was going but I knew I was in love with the movie.
Pacchigi is yet another movie about Zainichi Korean but it differs from all other movies sharing that theme I've seen so far. Mainly because it's a comedy (or at least starts out as one) but also because it doesn't in any way victimise the Koreans or demonise the Japanese.
It would be wrong to say this is the story of a Japanese high school kid falling in love with a Korean high school kid because the movie revolves around so many other things. It would also be wrong to say this is a story about violence between Korean and Japanese gangs in the 60's because even though there are many violent scenes depicting this it's not really relevant. I think more than anything it's a story about the 60's in Japan, about sexual liberation, about freedom, about music, about doing what you want.
Basically I recommend it.
