Nobody Knows

Theatrical Release Date: 2005 02 04 (USA - Limited)

UPC: 027616928931

Studio: MGM

MPAA Rating: PG13   Contains:[Adult Situations, Adult Language]

Summary: Hirokazu Kore-eda, who wrote and directed the international success After Life, returns with this story about a family dealing with an unusual dilemma in an unusual manner. Keiko (You) is a single mother who moves with her 12-year-old son, Akira (Yuya Yagira), into a small flat in a large city; however, what the building management doesn't know is that Keiko also has three other children, all fathered by different men: ten-year-old Kyoko (Ayu Kitaura), seven-year-old Shigeru (Hiei Kimura), and four-year-old Yuki (Momoko Shimizu). One day, Akira finds a note from his mother, saying that she'll be away for a while and that he's in charge while she's gone; the message is accompanied by an envelope full of money. Akira takes this news in stride, since it isn't the first time this has happened; he sees to it that the bills are paid, Kyoko takes care of the housework, and the youngest kids look after one another. But days stretch into weeks and it becomes clear that Kieko may not be coming back for a while. At first, the children try to keep up appearances as if their mother were still around, but as time goes on and money gets low, things become increasingly chaotic, and Keiko starts running out of ways to dodge the landlord and keep their problem a secret. Daremo Shiranai was inspired by actual events known in Japan as The Affair of the Four Abandoned Children of Nishi-Sugamo, though Kore-eda's version differs considerably from what occurred in real life. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Drama

Awards: In Competition – Cannes Film Festival Film Presented – Toronto International Film Festival Film Presented – Telluride Film Festival Best Actor – Cannes Film Festival

Features: cc

Nobody Knows

Format: Digital Video Disc (DVD)

Release Date: 09/13/2005

Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Vistavision

Audio: DDS Dolby Digital Surround

Runtime: 139 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Subtitles: English

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Disc #1 -- Nobody Knows
1. Main Title/New Home [9:31]
2. Hiding [8:08]
3. Math Lesson [8:32]
4. Abandoned [9:04]
5. Seeking Help [8:05]
6. Home Again, Gone Again [10:06]
7. Happy New Year [8:43]
8. Birthday Girl [9:12]
9. Breaking the Rules [8:07]
10. Outside! [9:22]
11. Seeds to Grow [8:13]
12. Facing Facts [8:55]
13. Downhill [9:24]
14. Dream/Nightmare [8:10]
15. To See the Planes [9:12]
16. Going On/End Credits [8:12]

Josh Ralske

Hirokazu Koreeda's Nobody Knows offers an intelligent and compassionate glimpse into the lives of four abandoned children, their unique resourcefulness, and their tragic inability to survive indefinitely on their own. It's an engrossing, occasionally wonderful drama. It's more in line with the perceptive naturalism and subtextual symbolism of his previous film, Distance, than with the singular brilliance of After Life. While it's based on an actual incident that occurred in Japan in 1988, it also bears a strong resemblance to Isild Le Besco's Demi-Tarif, which takes place in Paris, but is also about a group of siblings surviving alone with a mother who briefly flits in and out of their lives. Nobody Knows takes a more subdued, realistic, and responsible to the situation than the French film's unmediated anarchy. It's a more traditional narrative, moving inexorably toward tragedy and not quite as astonishing as Le Besco's. That said, Koreeda gets strong, affecting performances from his young cast, and it's impossible not to be moved by their plight and heartened by their resilience. But they still function better as symbols of societal neglect and indifference than as fully realized characters. Koreeda's earthbound approach allows him to address this theme without being too heavy-handed about it, but his movie runs a bit too long to sustain it. Even the name of the actress he's cast as the children's flighty, selfish mother (Japanese television star YOU) serves his larger purpose. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Kan Hanae  Actor 
Kimura Hiei  Actor 
Yagira Yuya  Actor 
Kitaura Ayu  Actor 
Shimizu Momoko  Actor 
Hirokazu Kore-eda  Director 
Yutaka Shigenobu  Executive Producer 
Gontiti  Composer (Music Score) 
Shigenobu Yutaka  Executive Producer 
Kawashiro Kazumi  Executive Producer 
Yuya Yagira  Actor 
Ayu Kitaura  Actor 
Hiei Kimura  Actor 
Momoko Shimizu  Actor 
Hanae Kan  Actor 
You  Actor 

Country: Japan