Review | The Confidence Man JP: Episode of the Princess movie review – charming sequel overshadowed by deaths of Yuko Takeuchi, Haruma Miura
- Set in Singapore and Langkawi and riffing on the success of Crazy Rich Asians, this tale of con artists out to steal an inheritance is spun off from a TV series
- While they have only small parts in the film, the suicides of two of the stars from the series, Yuko Takeuchi and Haruma Miura, have overshadowed its release
3/5 stars
While their contributions to The Confidence Man JP: Episode of the Princess are small – Takeuchi has barely a minute of screen time – their lively, mischievous performances will only add to the confusion and disbelief over their deaths.
The film continues the globe-trotting exploits of con artist Dako (Masami Nagasawa) and her team, as they head first to Singapore, and later to the luxurious island of Langkawi, in their attempt to infiltrate one of the world’s richest families. A series of lighthearted heists and swindles ensues, followed by a lesson in ethics more valuable than any of the gang’s ill-gotten gains.
Nagasawa is supported by series regulars Masahiro Higashide, Fumiyo Kohinata and Lisa Oda, as her fellow confidence tricksters, as well as arch-nemesis Yosuke Eguchi, and Miura as Dako’s former flame, Jesse.
