Review | We Make Antiques! film review: Japanese caper is more humorous high jinks than homage to tradition
- A struggling antiques dealer thinks he’s found a rare tea bowl, only to learn it is the work of a clever faker. They team up for a classic con caper
- While made with unbridled enthusiasm, the film’s insistent championing of traditional artistry and outdated art forms ultimately jars
2/5 stars
In the world of Japanese antiques, nobody can be trusted – or so it would appear in Masaharu Take’s comedy. We Make Antiques! portrays an industry overrun by duplicitous dealers and fraudulent forgers, where carefully crafted copies are passed off as priceless antiquities to unwitting collectors and institutions alike.
Between the cons and the humorous high jinks, the director also looks to champion traditional artistry and handicrafts, even if they exist today only to imitate their priceless predecessors.
In the seaside city of Sakai, struggling antiques dealer Norio (Kiichi Nakai) believes he’s struck gold when he discovers a 16th century tea bowl amid a private collection of worthless knick-knacks. The bowl is revealed to be a fake, expertly crafted by local artist Sasuke (Kuranosuke Sasaki), who heads a team of forgers out of a nearby sushi bar.
Soon enough, slippery dealer Hiwatashi (Kogan Ashiya) and stuffy antiques expert Tanahashi (Masaomi Kondo) come sniffing around, and Norio and Sasuke spy an opportunity to join forces and get their revenge on their big-name rivals for past grievances.
Reuniting with his 100 Yen Love screenwriter Shin Adachi, Take sets the stage for a classic con artist caper, and assembles a menagerie of larger-than-life characters who orbit the central protagonists and escalate the overall absurdity.