Hirokazu Koreeda's "Nobody Knows" made a buzz in 2004 Cannes Film Festival with its leading actor Yuya Yagira, who became the youngest winner of the Best Actor category at 14 years old. Koreeda has been known for documentary-like style films, but is venturing out to a totally different genre this time, with a samurai period drama "Hanayori mo Naho" (literal translation: "More than a flower"). The filming is now finished and the press conference was held in Tokyo on Feb. 10. The film is scheduled to open on June 3 in Japan.
The film is about a whimpy samurai who travels to Edo (current Tokyo) from his native Shinshu for the revenge of his father. Samurai is played by Junichi Okada, and the opposite heroin by Rie Miyazawa. Miyazawa said, "I strongly felt the theme of this movie, 'to live', while trying to capture the changing emotions of the heroin." Director Koreeda commented, "Not the dramatized death, but I wanted to make a period movie that I myself want to watch."
Miyazawa showed off a ring on her right ring finger while the press asked the questions about her relationship with a jewerly designer Takuji Mikida, denying the report that they have broken up.
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