εεε¨δΈ | natori shuuichi (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
paperpusher) wrote2020-09-26 09:05 am
paperpusher) wrote2020-09-26 09:05 am
SPARKLING DETECTIVE AKEBOSHI KOUTAROU: FIANCE OF THE FUNERAL PROCESSION
"Sparkling Detective Akeboshi Koutarou" is a historical mystery series akin to Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes movies. Set in ??? the past in Japan (the 1920s??), it stars Natori Shuuichi as the playboy detective Akeboshi Koutarou-- characters who are familiar with Japanese names/their meanings will note that "Akeboshi Koutarou" is basically "celebrity/dawn star bright sun boy". It's not subtle.
Not subtle at all.
In Fiance of the Funeral Procession, Detective Akeboshi is approached by Benikawa Ranko, the wealthy daughter of the owners of the Benikawa Department Store. She is currently engaged to Kida Minoru, the heir to the Kida Trade company. When left alone in her fiance's mansion one day, she starts hearing voices from the ceiling. She climbs up to discover a parrot, who is explained as Minoru's pet who had escaped its cage. Though Minoru is thrilled to get his parrot back, whenever Ranko is left alone with the parrot, it says "just kill the next one too." Thoroughly unsettled, Ranko asks Detective Akeboshi to investigate.
Akeboshi discovers that Minoru had been engaged three times previously to three separate wealthy and beautiful women, and each one died mysteriously in an accident before the wedding. Both Minoru and Ranko begin to look suspicious-- Minoru never mentioned anything about his previous string of bad luck, and Akeboshi seems to hold himself at arm's length from Ranko (read: he doesn't flirt with her, oh my god). However, after collecting photographs of the previous fiancees, Akeboshi notices that the third fiancee, Botan, was present in the background of the photos of the other two. Botan was obsessed with Minoru, and stalked and killed his previous fiancees so she could marry him, then died in a legitimate accident. She was the original owner of the parrot, and Minoru kept it after she died; Ranko looks similar to Botan, so the parrot mistook her for its previous owner and repeat her words ("I just have to kill the next one, too") back to Ranko.
The case cleared, Ranko and Minoru can get happily married. There's probably a love interest for Akeboshi in this movie, because why not.
The production values and acting in this movie are really top-tier-- turns out Natori actually is a really good actor? These movies are well-regarded enough that four 16-year-old boys bought tickets in advance to see it, and the main character consistently gets annoyed at how invested he is in the movie. The one odd thing is that the lizard that lives on Natori's skin is occasionally visible on screen. Based on how inconsistently it shows up to the point of causing continuity errors when camera angles change, it's clear that no one involved in the production seems to be aware of it, and everyone (even Natori) acts as if it isn't there.
For reference, the 12-page short that covers the protag and his friends trying to deduce the end of the movie is available here if anyone is curious!
Not subtle at all.
In Fiance of the Funeral Procession, Detective Akeboshi is approached by Benikawa Ranko, the wealthy daughter of the owners of the Benikawa Department Store. She is currently engaged to Kida Minoru, the heir to the Kida Trade company. When left alone in her fiance's mansion one day, she starts hearing voices from the ceiling. She climbs up to discover a parrot, who is explained as Minoru's pet who had escaped its cage. Though Minoru is thrilled to get his parrot back, whenever Ranko is left alone with the parrot, it says "just kill the next one too." Thoroughly unsettled, Ranko asks Detective Akeboshi to investigate.
Akeboshi discovers that Minoru had been engaged three times previously to three separate wealthy and beautiful women, and each one died mysteriously in an accident before the wedding. Both Minoru and Ranko begin to look suspicious-- Minoru never mentioned anything about his previous string of bad luck, and Akeboshi seems to hold himself at arm's length from Ranko (read: he doesn't flirt with her, oh my god). However, after collecting photographs of the previous fiancees, Akeboshi notices that the third fiancee, Botan, was present in the background of the photos of the other two. Botan was obsessed with Minoru, and stalked and killed his previous fiancees so she could marry him, then died in a legitimate accident. She was the original owner of the parrot, and Minoru kept it after she died; Ranko looks similar to Botan, so the parrot mistook her for its previous owner and repeat her words ("I just have to kill the next one, too") back to Ranko.
The case cleared, Ranko and Minoru can get happily married. There's probably a love interest for Akeboshi in this movie, because why not.
The production values and acting in this movie are really top-tier-- turns out Natori actually is a really good actor? These movies are well-regarded enough that four 16-year-old boys bought tickets in advance to see it, and the main character consistently gets annoyed at how invested he is in the movie. The one odd thing is that the lizard that lives on Natori's skin is occasionally visible on screen. Based on how inconsistently it shows up to the point of causing continuity errors when camera angles change, it's clear that no one involved in the production seems to be aware of it, and everyone (even Natori) acts as if it isn't there.
For reference, the 12-page short that covers the protag and his friends trying to deduce the end of the movie is available here if anyone is curious!