KOKUHO

国宝

Sang-il LEE

Quinzaine 2025 | Feature film | 174 min | Japan |

World premiere

Upon the death of his father, the head of a yakuza gang, Kikuo is taken under the wing of the renowned Kabuki actor Hanjiro Hanai. He becomes his disciple alongside Shunsuke, Hanjiro’s only son. The two young men decide to dedicate their lives to the art of Kabuki. Over the course of fifty years, they experience glory and downfall, scandal and triumph, friendship and betrayal.

Artistic & technical sheet

Contacts

With

Ryo Yoshizawa (Kikuo), Ryusei Yokohama (Shunsuke), Mitsuki Takahata (Harue), Shinobu Terajima (Sachiko), Soya Kurokawa (Young Kikuo), Keitatsu Koshiyama (Young Shunsuke), Min Tanaka (Mangiku), Ken Watanabe (Hanjiro)

Screenplay

Satoko Okudera

Photography

Sofian El Fani

Editing

Tsuyoshi Imai

Production design

Yohei Taneda

adapted from

KOKUHO by Shuichi Yoshida

Sound

Mitsugu Shiratori

Music

Marihiko Hara

Lee Sang-il is a Korean-Japanese filmmaker, based in Japan. As one of the most popular graduates of Japan Institute of the Moving Image which was funded by Shohei Imamura, Lee has been making films since. His Japanese language remake of Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven was premiered at Venice Film festival.