Top Japanese director Kurosawa Kiyoshi is in post-production on “Le Chemin du Serpent”, a French-language adaptation of his own 1998 film “The Serpent’s Path”.
The story follows a mysterious woman who teams up with a man whose daughter was killed and who now wants revenge. Together they kidnap and torture members of an organisation to find out what really happened.
Starring Damien Bonnard (“Asteroid City”, “Les Miserables”) and Shibasaki Ko (“47 Ronin”, “Battle Royale”), the film is the anchor title of the TIFFCOM sales slate of major Japanese studio Kadokawa.
The film was produced by Kadokawa and Jean-Luc Ormieres’ Cinefrance Studios. The Japanese company is handling worldwide sales of the film outside France and Belgium.
Kurosawa, a Cannes regular with titles such as Pulse, Bright Future, Tokyo Sonata, Journey to the Shore and Before We Vanish, is preparing to complete the new film in time for a summer 2024 release.
Kadokawa’s other new release is in a completely different vein. The musical comedy-drama “Let’s Go Karaoke” is in advanced post-production and will be released in Japan in January.
Directed by Nobuhiro Yamashita and starring Go Ayano and Jun Saito, the film, adapted by Akiko Nogi from an original comic by Yama Wayama, tells the story of a school bully who faces terrible humiliation and a hefty fine if he loses a karaoke competition. He picks on a stoic choirboy to help him through the rehearsals.
Kadokawa is also responsible for the distribution of “Neck” (aka “Kubi”), the historical action film directed by and starring Kitano Takeshi, which had its world premiere in the Official Selection at Cannes. The film now has a Japanese release date of 23 November.
In what has been a busy year for the company, it now has a number of other film titles scheduled for release between now and next spring. These include: “Matched”, a dating thriller directed by Uchida Eiji (“Midnight Swan”), which is set for a February release; “Out”, an action drama about a teenager recently released from juvenile detention but facing an early return, which is set for a Nov. 17 release; the Takashi Shimizu-produced horror title “Best Wishes to All”, which is completed but undated; and “Manzai Kyokai The Movie”, a documentary about Tokyo’s stand-up comedy scene, which is set for a spring 2024 release.
Kadokawa’s title that is furthest from completion is “6 Lying University Students”, a suspense drama in which a group of students seeking employment at an IT company suddenly discover that the company has changed the rules and where they thought teamwork was required, the students must instead compete against each other. The film is based on a novel by Asakura Akinari published by Kadokawa and is scheduled for release in late 2024.
