Comedy

Oh Lucy!

オー・ルーシー！

Directed by: Atsuko Hirayanagi
2017 / 96 minutes / Under 15s must be accompanied by an adult

Brilliantly simple and bracingly funny—a dark comedy about culture clash and self-discovery.

Screened as part of the JFF 2018.

Oh Lucy! follows Setsuko (Shinobu Terajima in an Independent Spirit Award-nominated performance), a single, emotionally unfulfilled woman, seemingly stuck with a drab, meaningless life in Tokyo. At least until she’s convinced by her niece, Mika (Shioli Kutsuna; Kiseki Sobito of That Day, Deadpool 2), to enrol in an unorthodox English class that requires her to wear a blonde wig and take on an American alter ego named “Lucy.”

The new identity awakens something dormant in Setsuko, and she quickly develops romantic feelings for her American teacher, John (Josh Hartnett, Wicker Park). When John suddenly disappears from class, Setsuko travels halfway around the world in search of him, and in the outskirts of Southern California, family ties and past lives are tested as she struggles to preserve the dream and promise of “Lucy.”

Japanese-American director Atsuko Hirayanagi orchestrates masterful performances in her first feature length film. The cast of Oh Lucy! are perfectly in tune with each other, playing their roles so well they are believable and likeable despite their flaws. 

In a film full of gems, the highlight for us is Shinobu Terajima, playing the title role. Also look out for chameleon actor Koji Yakusho playing a very different role from his other films Tampopo, The Blood of Wolves and The Third Murder. And in case you’re wondering if that’s Josh Hartnett in the film—yes, it is Josh Hartnett.