Review | Hit Me Anyone One More Time film review: Japanese comedy from Koki Mitani about an amnesiac PM is full of laughs
- Koki Mitani’s latest big-screen farce stars Kiichi Nakai as a despicable premier who unwittingly turns over a new leaf after losing his memory
- Nakai’s self-deprecating performance provides endless fun, while Mitani’s script maintains a relentless barrage of farcical scenarios for him to navigate
3/5 stars
What if Japan’s worst ever prime minister lost his memory and became a better person? That’s the simple premise behind writer-director Koki Mitani’s latest big-screen farce, which stars regular collaborator Kiichi Nakai as the despicable premier, who unwittingly turns over a new leaf.
It’s a well-worn comedic concept, but in the hands of Mitani’s adept ensemble, Hit Me Anyone One More Time sustains the high energy and humour throughout.
Corrupt, belligerent and misogynistic, Prime Minister Keisuke Kuroda was polling at just 2.3 per cent with his electorate, whom he openly despises and ridicules. When a disgruntled voter hits Kuroda with a rock, the PM awakes in hospital with no memory of who he is, or anything from his 30-plus years in politics.
His personal secretaries, Isaka (Dean Fujioka) and Ms. Banba (Eiko Koike), hustle to keep his amnesia secret from everyone including his wife, Satoko (Yuriko Ishida), and his duplicitous cabinet secretary (Masao Kusakari).
The Japanese title translates as “I am unable to recall”, a phrase Kuroda frequently used to dismiss accusations of wrongdoing, of which there were many. Following his accident, the new Kuroda is timid, indecisive and unashamedly affable.