Review | The Asadas movie review: Japanese photographer Masashi Asada celebrated in human drama starring Kazunari Ninomiya, Satoshi Tsumabuki and Masaki Suda
- The film shows how Masashi Asada evolved from outcast rebel to altruistic volunteer after the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami struck northern Japan
- J-pop idol Kazunari Ninomiya stars as the photographer known for his oddball family portraits
3.5/5 stars
Inspired by the life and work of photographer Masashi Asada, who garnered widespread acclaim for his eccentric family portraits, Ryota Nakano’s latest drama charts the artist’s evolution from rebellious outcast to altruistic volunteer in the wake of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.
The Asadas stars pop idol Kazunari Ninomiya in the lead role, with able support from Satoshi Tsumabuki, Masaki Suda and Jun Fubuki.
Nakano’s work is filled with dysfunctional families who are reconciled through tragedy, and these people remain central to this affectionate if occasionally meandering chronicle of Masashi and his clan.
After being gifted a camera for his 12th birthday, a minor mishap sees young Masashi, his father (Mitsuru Hirata), and older brother wind up in the accident and emergency, where his mother works as a nurse.
The burgeoning photographer seizes the opportunity to snap the four of them together, and the picture subsequently wins a prize, setting in motion a long-standing family tradition of oddball cosplay portraits, posing as firefighters, detectives, racing drivers and yakuza.