The Legend of the Stardust Brothers

星くず兄弟の伝説

Directed by: Macoto Tezka
1985 / 100 minutes / Unclassified 15+ (under 15s must be accompanied by an adult)

80s boy band madness—the cult classic you didn’t know you wanted

Rival amateur musicians, punk Kan and new-wave Shingo, are sucked inside the corporate beast of Japanese 80s music industry. Seduced by the allure of fame, they exit as the bedazzled and fabulous Stardust Brothers—complete with silver jumpsuits, cute choreography and the catchiest pop hit toppling the charts overnight. With their beautiful ‘number one fan’ by their side, the Stardust Brothers taste the glory of the spotlight, but their catchy lyrics ‘once you reach No. 1, you can only go down’ soon take on a new meaning.

At the age of 23, director Macoto Tezka (son of animation legend Osamu Tezuka) crafted the experimental film around an existing soundtrack by musician and 80s TV celebrity Haruo Chikada. Played by real-life musicians Shingo Kubota and Kan Takagi, the Stardust Brothers lead an eclectic cast of mostly non-actors including musicians (visual kei icon Issay; Sunplaza Nakano), manga artists (including Lupin III’s Monkey Punch) and film directors (Kiyoshi Kurosawa). Resurrected from obscurity, this 8mm cult classic is an invitation to embrace the cringe and creativity, marvel at low budget 80’s special effects and costuming, and tally the endless celebrity cameos.