Yu Aoi for Period Drama Raiou with Masaki Okada

December 15, 2009 — 9 Comments

Julz sent this to my email, and then saw it on Nippon Cinema.

Thank you, Yu. Just what I asked for!
And before I get to see Ike-chan! LOL

Also, gonna quote NC coz it seems more precise. Yu and Masaki Okada have worked together on Honokaa Boy, but Yu was in such a small portion of the first 10 minutes of the film, that it shouldn’ t really count as working together. LOL

But here goes~

Yu Aoi and Masaki Okada are set to star in an upcoming jidaigeki film called Raiou, which is based on a best-selling novel by Mari Ueza inspired by Shakespeare’s classic tale of star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet.

Okada will play Narimichi, a young man born into the family of the shogunate, and thus bound by the shackles of his own bloodline and the expectations of Edo period society. Aoi will play Yu, a girl who has been living deep in the mountains since being kidnapped at a young age. Under normal circumstances, these two would never cross paths, but a chance encounter in front of a strange tree called “Raiou” sparks an unlikely romance.

The project will be directed by Ryuichi Hiroki who previously worked on Eita’s movie April Bride, which I dunno… gives me some doubts. I didn’t really think much of April Bride, and I do love Eita a lot. However, the idea of Aoi playing a “savage” [insert shameless Savage Yejin plug here] makes it interesting.

9 responses to Yu Aoi for Period Drama Raiou with Masaki Okada

  1. Words cannot express how happy I am!!! I guess this is our early Xmas present right Amy! All I have to say is its about time!

    BTW, I loved Tokyo Trash Baby which was directed by Ryuichi Hiroki so I’m pretty excited. He has a reputation for putting out some pretty edgy and sexual films…..should be interesting with Yu in one of them. And we thought the after-sex scene in OMYG was shocking….can you imagine what’s in store for us?

    Its also funny she’s playing a character with her name!

  2. that’s bloody good news !!

  3. woohoo!

    thanks, Acerk for the info. xD

    *yu fans rejoice* LOL

    I guess I must add Tokyo Trash Baby to my watch list. I’m interested in seeing Yu playing a raised in the wild kind of person. She could go all wild on that one, or she could play it all reclusive, or all curious.

    the yu film fan in me is getting giddy.

  4. The “star-crossed lovers” theme has been done to death and most of these types of films end up being overdramatic anyway. I personally hope that this director takes “Raiou” in a different direction and makes the film a bit raunchy and disturbing for a change….trust me, he’s capable of it which you will see by watching TTB. I also think that it would be good for Yu to go into a different direction with her film career. Besides “All About Lily Chou Chou” and “Welcome to the Quiet Room”, she’s basically been the stereotypical “good girl” in most of her films. It would be refreshing to have her play a vulgar character and I think it would open up more demanding/mature roles for her in the future.

    BTW, Tokyo Trash Baby is a love it or hate it film. I recommended it to two of my friends and they despised it….so don’t hate me if its not your cup of tea.

    Along with TTB, you should check out “I Am an S&M Writer” and “Vibrator”, two other arthouse films by Ryuichi Hiroki that are female-centric and deal with taboo subject matter. This ought to give you an idea of what Yu could possibly be in for so you’re not as shocked as when you watched One Million Yen Girl.

  5. *dances in with pom poms*

    YAY!!!! Yuu-chan is back!

  6. is that a new email address? or is that a typo??

  7. typoI wrote this as I was sleep deprived so yeah….

  8. Hey, Acerk.
    I added the films you suggested (must have seen them on TheAuteurs updates), and I’m about done with the Samurai trilogy. Loved The Twilight Samurai, but The Hidden Blade was just okay. Can’t wait to watch the above mentioned… though they’d be kinda hard to explain when they show up as “Amy just watched Vibrator” and “Amy just watched I Am an S&M Writer” LOL

  9. Hey Amy,

    Glad you liked The Twilight Samurai…its one of the first films that started my fascination with Japanese cinema (AALCC and Nobody Knows being the other two). I’m really excited about Ototo coming out and I bet you are too now that you know what Mr. Yamada is capable of.

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