Filmmaker Kyoko Miyake takes a dive into Japanese teen idol culture in this discomforting documentary. These teens are like pop stars elsewhere except that their fans are particularly intense. Nineteen-year-old Rio, one of 10,000 such young women, makes her living as an idol. She performs shows, appears in videos, attends handshake events (similar to meet and greets), and sells branded merchandise. Koji, a 43-year-old fan, saw his relationship with his girlfriend disintegrate as he attended hundreds of Rio's shows. When Rio embarks on a bike tour through the countryside, Koji and a few other fans follow her from town to town. Mitacchi, another middle-aged fan, admits that he's obsessed with 22-year-old Yuka, who he describes as "energetic and cheerful." He spends $2,000 a month on his habit, and can no longer afford to visit his parents. Naoyamumu, a college student, is particularly fond of 14-year-old Amu, who doesn't find it strange that many fans are twice her age. "They're like fathers," her mother says. "They protect her." Naoyamumu says he doesn't have any interest in the work that a real relationship would require, so this fantasy version suits him just fine (he makes no mention of his favorite idol's minor status). The men claim that they are just recapturing their youth, but the performers' sexy moves tell another story. As journalist Minori Kitahara puts it, "The society will stop at nothing to protect male fantasies," although Miyake's clear-eyed approach here lets audiences form their own conclusions. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)
Tokyo Idols
(2017) 88 min. In Japanese w/English subtitles. DVD: $29.99 ($280 w/PPR from www.kimstim.com). KimStim (avail. from most distributors). Volume 33, Issue 2
Tokyo Idols
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