Tokyo Oasis
Hello.
That'll be 350 yen.
Out of 500.
Your change is 1 50 yen.
Thank you.
A rolling receive.
Excuse me?
You did a rolling receive, just now.
What are you laughing at?
Don't play jokes.
That was dangerous.
Would you give me a lift?
Huh?
Could you give me a ride in this van?
Sorry. I was just trying to hitch a ride,
but no truck stopped.
This van's getting on the expressway
from over there, isn't it?
That expressway over there.
Why do I have to give a stranger a ride?
At this late hour, give a woman in black
who suddenly appears, a ride?
Besides, a woman who tried to die.
Is this a horror? It's terrifying.
It's not terrifying. Not at all.
I didn't appear suddenly. I was trying
to hitchhike here before you came.
The black dress makes me unnoticeable.
So, I tried to get some attention.
I wasn't trying to die.
I have to get on that expressway and go.
Aren't you afraid of me?
Doesn't getting a ride from a stranger
scare you?
I may be a bad man.
No one with boxes of lettuce in a van
can be bad.
Oh, Tokyo Tower.
It came up suddenly.
That was scary.
Is it because I saw something huge
at night?
Don't you get scared
when you see something huge at night?
Where's the funeral?
What's that?
Where's the funeral going to be?
Or, is it the wake?
Where are you headed for?
You're answering my question
with a question.
I'm going as far as where I need
to get off the expressway.
Then, please give me a ride
to wherever that is.
You don't know where I'm getting off.
Is that okay with you?
That's fine.
Thank you so much for giving me a ride
today. I really appreciate it.
Did someone you love die today?
The person must mean much to you
to rush over at night.
Yes, a person I loved dearly
also died today.
In my daily life, it happens often
that someone I love dies.
That sounds odd.
The way you said that is very strange.
Until a while ago, we were shooting
near that convenience store.
Shooting a movie.
Actually, it's still going on,
but I just slipped out.
Look,
with a pack of tea.
It's good to carry tea with you.
Just say you're going on a break.
Shooting a movie?
At that time and place?
How convenient for you.
When I first saw you,
I thought for sure I met you somewhere.
Was it simply because I've seen you on TV?
It's a lie. I lied.
I'm a liar.
Every day, I tell lies,
and now
it's become a habit with me.
I guess so.
It does sound phony.
What part of your story is the truth
and what isn't?
On the top of that skinny tall building,
there's a lone signboard standing.
I bet it's an illuminated signboard
though the lights're out.
It had illuminated message
moving up and down, I guess.
It's completely dark now,
but still interesting.
I like things like that.
I don't know why, but I really like it.
An airplane.
There's an airplane.
I wonder where it's going
at this late hour.
When you see planes at night,
aren't you tempted to go somewhere?
So, it's going to rain in Shanghai
tomorrow.
Finally, we're back to the weather.
It'll be cloudy in NY, rainy in Shanghai,
and sunny in Tokyo tomorrow.
Now for the exciting Hot News.
That story about a housewife
climbing a tall chimney alone was amusing.
The next is about marriage fraud.
We've always had marriage frauds
for years.
But what's new about this guy is --
he's a "herbivore."
A "soshoku danshi" marriage fraud.
Cool. Fascinating.
He's clean-cut and
looks great in striped shirts.
Yes, yes, yes. He only eats greens.
And he's an older-lady-killer.
His tracks disappeared after he tried to
marry a woman 14 years older.
He appears mainly in Tokyo
and around the North Kanto area.
His work varied from a plumber,
to an organic vegetable vendor to
even a primary school teacher.
"What a fool I've been!" he exclaimed.
He tried to swim around
inside the cave,
covering as much area
as it would allow him.
When people are distressed,
they frequently pace around the room
just in this fashion.
Unfortunately, the salamander's habitat
wasn't very large for swimming around.
It's Ibuse's novel.
Why did you change the channel?
About the marriage fraud,
that story of the marriage fraud
was interesting.
I don't want to hear it.
Aren't you interested in it?
Because that marriage fraud is me.
That's why.
The order for kitsune udon.
Two bowls of kitsune udon are ready.
Thank you very much.
Thank you very much.
Why kitsune udon?
I should be asking you that.
There's plenty others on the menu.
Do you like udon?
Yes.
But my favorite noodle is himokawa,
about this thick.
It's a local food in my hometown.
Is it something like kishimen or houto?
If I can be perfectly clear,
it's nothing like kishimen or houto.
It's completely different from
either of them.
By any chance,
were you a volleyball player?
Yes.
I used to be a setter.
How did you know?
I knew it.
I was a volleyball player, too.
You did a rolling receive back there.
Back there?
If you insist,
maybe I did a rolling receive.
They don't do that now.
What're you talking about?
Once I worked as a volleyball player.
After a funeral job,
you took on a job as a volleyball player?
Long time ago,
we used to do lots of rolling receives.
Didn't you do that, too?
No one does it anymore. It's outdated.
If you do that on the court,
everyone will look and frown.
In fact, the other day,
I did it without knowing that.
That's why, back there,
I had to tell you that.
Now, I see.
You must have been an attacker.
So you tried doing an A quick
against the moving truck.
Here's a B quick.
Then, A.
One more time.
Okay, an A quick.
I hear waves.
The ocean must be in that direction.
It's too dark to see it, though.
Doesn't the sky over there look hazy?
It's a break of day.
It's daybreak for sure.
I'm getting off the expressway.
The exit,
there seems to be one.
A freight train.
A freight train is running on the tracks.
It's running alone in such darkness.
It's running all alone.
Great.
It's a long one.
How many cars are there?
It's before daybreak, but
something's already started.
Yes, it's started moving.
Is that an exit?
We're getting off.
The sky, I didn't know it was so clear.
Where are you running off to?
You ran away from something,
didn't you?
Yes, I did run away.
This is the place I wanted to come.
This is the place I really had to come.
This place?
I always flee.
But actually,
I had never escaped at all.
Rather, the farther I try to go,
I always ended up where I started
and then made fierce attacks.
Where are you escaping to?
I will not run away.
I just transport lettuces earnestly.
You're right.
So, are you fine here?
I'm fine here.
Okay.
Thank you.
What is it?
Money for the ice candy.
Ice candy?
At that convenience store,
before you did your rolling receive,
before running after me,
you dropped your ice candy.
The ice candy.
Thanks.
I've seen her somewhere.
When she gave me her ticket,
I wondered for a moment who she was,
but couldn't remember at all.
Isn't it someone
who comes here sometimes?
Well, I wonder.
It must be.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.
Is anything the matter?
Thank you very much.
Yoshida.
May I ask you a favor?
Yes, of course.
Yes?
Will you escort this lady home?
Because it's late.
I see.
I appreciate that.
His name is Yoshida. He'll be walking
next to you until you reach home.
Take good care of her.
I will.
Thank you for coming today.
Excuse me.
Touko san.
What happened?
It's been a long time.
What're you doing here?
I work here.
Here?
Yes.
Oh, the movie. It finished.
Here you are.
Thank you.
That's good.
Are you alright?
I'm fine.
But I'm just surprised.
Me, too.
I just finished with one of my jobs
and had dinner with everyone nearby.
You did?
I had a little too much to drink.
It's unusual for you, isn't it?
You think so?
You never seemed to be much of a drinker,
I thought you can hold your drinks.
I appeared to you that way?
In the past.
It feels kind of strange.
For me to sit here with you.
Yes.
Even before, there was no chance
for just the two of us to talk.
Now that you mentioned it, we didn't.
We really didn't.
Sorry, it's getting late.
Isn't it time to close here?
It's alright.
Kikuchi san, are you always here
by yourself?
There's usually another person
a young man to check the tickets.
He's out now on an errand.
Is he?
It may take a little more time.
I see.
How have you been since then?
Sorry to have disappeared
without saying goodbye.
It's just that,
suddenly you were gone.
Sometimes I wondered how you're doing.
I asked around,
but no one seemed to know.
I was thinking
I should at least tell you, but
after leaving the job,
I couldn't think of anything for a while
and did nothing.
I traveled abroad and
after some time had passed,
I thought it was time for me
to do something.
I took on a totally different job once,
but somehow i returned to a place
close to familiar grounds.
I've been working here
for the past few years.
A movie theater.
The movies you appeared in
are also shown here sometimes.
Here?
Sometimes new movies and
at times some old ones.
What about the movies you wrote?
We've shown them as well.
You still don't write?
I quit writing then.
Did you?
I thought about writing again, but
restarting something I had given up once,
somehow felt uneasy,
a sense of resistance within myself.
Why did you quit writing scripts?
Asking such a straight forward question
is so much like you , Touko san.
Is that so?
But it's been bothering me all along.
All the people I asked just knew
you'd quit, but not the reason.
They did?
Why did you quit?
In my heart,
I no longer found meanings
to continue in that way.
Perhaps, I realized
I'd have continued to write
without really knowing anything.
The more I wrote, the more questions I had
about other people and myself.
The questions increased.
Without solving these questions,
I, more or less, began to accept
the things that seemed fine
on the surface in my daily life.
Then, I noticed
what'd become of me.
Thereafter, all kinds of things
such as from sceneries to
everything inside my head
suddenly went blank.
Now, I see.
In those days,
you were thinking these things.
Sorry, I'm the only one talking here.
Don't be sorry.
Now to think about it,
you're the kind of person who'd think
that way. Somehow I can understand.
Can you?
In fact I think it's natural for people
to think that way.
But the fact I felt that way
about myself and my work
was something never dawned on people.
Maybe so.
While thinking only about these things,
I realized I'd worried to much
about what people thought of me.
I can now consider these things as minor.
Maybe because
I had quit writing scripts then,
I'm able to feel this way.
When I decided to quit,
I couldn't imagine
I would ever feel this way.
But as time passed,
things I thought I knew in those days
gradually became visible to me.
So, that's what happened.
But then,
recently, I'd think back on the days
I was writing scripts.
Why don't you write again?
I don't think you're the same person
as you were in those days.
Do you think so?
Yes.
I also get the same kind of feelings
sometimes as you did back then.
You too, Touko san?
Of course.
When you continue to do one thing,
to have such feelings
isn't something special.
If you try writing again,
I'm sure it'll work out, maybe.
So it's maybe?
Isn't it good enough?
It doesn't have to be perfect.
Perhaps it's better to take things easy
sometimes.
because it took much time to get here.
You think so?
The place you returned to
may turn out to be a new place.
Is it going to be that simple?
How will you know if you don't try?
You're right.
A little while ago,
something was left here.
Just left here?
Sitting alone on a chair over there.
Sitting?
An old woman was...
an old woman was left behind.
Who left her here?
She told me that she was sitting with
'someone' during the movie, but
when the house lights went on,
that 'someone' sitting next to her
was gone.
Here's your coffee.
Thank you.
While listening to her,
I thought that 'someone'
sitting next to her
might have been a stranger
from the very start.
A person she didn't know at all.
Just a person
that happened to sit next to her.
You may be right.
But for her, it was 'someone.'
It was 'someone' who sat next to her.
It was not a stranger, but
'someone' she knew briefly.
What happened to that old woman?
I was a bit worried about her, so
I asked the young man working here
to escort her home.
A person sitting next to you
can be thought in that way.
Welcome back. Was everything okay?
Yes. I walked her home.
Thank you.
Was anybody here?
An old acquaintance of mine was here
to see the movie.
Here's something.
How nice!
The old woman gave it to me
as I was leaving.
There's so much.
They look delicious.
Shall we eat?
Yes.
Thank you.
They're so good.
I just saw a person I told you about,
on the street back there.
Who's that?
A person who looked familiar.
Did you remember who she was?
I'm still not sure who it is.
Maybe it was 'someone'
you also didn't know after all.
I'm Mochizuki.
Here it is.
Take a seat.
Five days a week,
including weekends and holidays,
9 5 would be your working hours.
Any problem with that?
That'll be fine.
From your home,
it takes an hour and half.
It's kind of far.
If train connections go well,
it may just be an hour and 15 or 10.
Oh, okay.
Do you have any experience
in customer servicing?
Customer servicing?
Selling tickets comes under
customer servicing.
I have no experience in customer servicing.
Oh, okay.
What other part time jobs
have you had?
I've never had
any other part time jobs.
Is that right?
You're 23, aren't you?
The classified ad said
'no experience necessary.'
That's true, but...
oh, okay.
You're quite rare today.
One last thing.
Please tell me the reason for applying.
The reason I applied?
Yes. We ask all the applicants.
Since I was a child, I loved animals,
and I thought it'll be really nice
to work near the animals I love.
Fine, thank you. That's all for today.
We'll contact you with the results
at a later date.
You won't see it now.
Aardvarks are nocturnal animals.
Is that right?
Have you ever seen them?
No.
What do you imagine they look like?
"Aarde" means dirt, so
I imagine they are brown
and look somewhat like dirty pigs.
Or perhaps, they might resemble
wild boars.
Aardvarks are not pigs.
Tubulidentata Orycteropodidae
Orycteropus afer.
Besides not being pigs, they're totally
independent of any other living species.
The face looks like that of kangaroos
more than pigs.
The ears stand up like rabbits.
Round eyes, a long and thin face
with a very long nose similar to anteaters.
I must say, they have peculiar looks.
Also, they are full of mysteries
although they're just there within reach.
Don't you have a desire to see them?
But we can't see them, right?
Just one chance.
Huh?
Once a day, during their feeding time.
That's the only chance to see aardvarks.
But you have to be lucky.
Lucky?
They don't come out
when they don't feel up to eating.
Then, I can't see them for sure.
I've been forlorn of Fortune.
That sounds impressive.
Anyway, you still have some time
before the feeding.
You should see it.
It'll give you a good laugh.
They sure are big.
They're bigger than I think,
every time I see them.
I wonder why.
What are you drawing?
You're pretty good at drawing. What is it?
An ardvark.
I thought they look like this.
They're a little different.
You'd need to see
the actual animal yourself.
But honestly, you're very talented.
I know, but it's being wasted.
Wasted?
Care for one?
No, I'm fine.
Okay, I'll have one.
Do you often come to this zoo?
Yes.
I had an interview today.
An interview?
For a part time job
to sell tickets at the main entrance.
Most likely I failed.
Failed?
You don't know for sure yet, do you?
I've failed university entrance exams
five times.
So, I can pretty much sense it by now.
Is that so?
This is my fifth time to fail it.
Have you ever heard of 5 time failure?
Sounds strange, doesn't it?
Could be.
So I thought about getting
a part time job.
You're giving up?
I'm ridiculously good at
plaster figure drawings.
I can draw even with my eyes closed.
Do you know plaster figures?
The ancient sculptures found in Rome
and other places, they're copies of those.
My favorite is Hermes.
He's a naked young man
with natural curly hair.
Even if I can sketch it perfectly,
it's totally useless.
It's really a boring story.
Are you taking the day off today?
No, I have something later.
Is that okay?
No problem at all.
What is it?
It's difficult.
What's difficult?
Portrait.
Your face is very difficult to sketch.
There's no distinct feature,
which doesn't mean
you leave very little impression.
It's just that
your face is not very distinctive.
Is that so?
I have absolutely no idea
who you really are.
When I was a child, I often got lost here.
Lost?
Yes, on purpose.
On purpose?
I used to run off
'cause my father loved taking photos,
and it was a bother posing for him.
Weren't you afraid of being alone?
I knew I could always get back.
Sounds like a bratty kid.
I've tried it the other day.
The other day?
Yes. I ran away.
Did it make you feel good?
Well...
but it wasn't the same as before.
What do you mean?
When I ran away alone,
I had to come back alone.
No one stops here.
It's not so exciting, these birds.
They can see the sky from here, but...
Do you pity them?
Yes.
They may find it easy.
But they may escape at a full speed
if they had the chance, like you did.
But they may end up coming back here,
like I did.
I wonder.
That's how it goes
because it's safe here.
Then again, when they see the sky,
they may remember
how it felt then.
Would that make them want
to escape again?
They're the largest zebras.
The largest among all zebras.
They are?
Yes, they are.
Is it still too early?
I guess it's about time.
I don't see any feed.
The zoo keeper will bring it.
The aardvark?
We sent him to a zoo in Himeji.
To mate. You know, it's the mating season.
Sorry for forgetting to take this sign off.
I know you.
I recognized you.
Not that it makes any difference.
I think they like you better.
Since many years back,
I've been liked by animals.
I wonder if you have a smell
animals like?
Smell? Should I be happy about that?
By the way, where's Himeji?
Their habitat is Africa.
That's a little too far.
Don't you want to see the real aardvarks?
Aardvarks travel alone in search for food
in the pitch dark savanna.
I can't imagine what it's like
in such a far away place.
The zoo will be closing soon.
Please make your way to the exit.
We look forward to your visit again.
Thank you for coming today.
People say world is big, but
living in this city,
we completely forget that.
I've never been on a plane.
Don't worry, they rarely crash.
I will go.
Where to?
Ouch!
Bye.
Goodbye.
I will too.
We've all come so far alone
As if there is someone
giving you a gentle push
I want to thank you
Let us seize the day
I've found what I am looking for
Over the sky
My heart starts to vibrate
Satomi Kobayashi
The future that i see
Ryo Kase
The future that i see
Haru Kuroki
Wakes up once again
Tomoyo Harada
Let us whistle and walk together
You can meet the man
if you really want to
The green wind tells me
Why don't you look for
oasis of your heart?
The city of kaleidoscope slowly starts
To turn round
Collecting all the lights
I am gazing at
The day to see you again
Someday and
somewhere
Theme Song:
"Tokyo Oasis" by Taeko Onuki