I went to the video store today after not going for about three months. I rented three DVDs the last time I went there and I could’ve swore that I returned them two days late. The penalty is one-hundred yen per DVD per day which would bring the grand total to a whopping 600 yen. I should’ve just gotten it over with and paid the small amount of money (well, not so small... you could get a McDonald’s combo with that amount of money) a long time ago but I thought I’d see how long I could avoid the video shop.
Well, guess what? There was no fine! They said my information was a bit out of date and I had to write my address on a paper. That’s it.
Wanting to see something in Japanese, I decided to rent two DVDs. One is an old Studio-Giburi animation from the 70’s (I believe) with pandas in the story. I have no idea what to expect from this DVD.
The other DVD which I rented and watched a few hours ago is a movie of Kureyon Shinchan (クレヨンしんちゃん) . The movie’s title is BuriBuri Empire’s Secret Treasure (ブリブリ帝国の秘宝) from 1994.
I wonder how many people from abroad know about Kureyon Shinchan.
Kureyon Shinchan (KS) is the name of a young four year old boy who has a potty mouth. He says blunt and derogatory comments to his mother and father all the time. He tries to pick up young chicks by asking them whether they like green peppers. He likes to draw an elephant using his willy -- the willy being the nose. Sometimes he puts his willy between his crotch and pretends that he’s a woman. He pulls his shorts down half way and does the most bizarre dance while shaking his butt. He’s a pure-hearted trouble maker.
I say he’s pure-hearted because he doesn’t mean to be cruel. He’s just an honest, perverted and obnoxious kid. He’s got all the tendencies that all men have -- deep down.
Up to now, I’ve read 49 out of 50 of KS’s comics (I’ll read the last one some day...). These are great comics for people learning Japanese because you can learn Japanese that is used in daily life while learning bizarre expressions that can be used as jokes. I’ve used many phrases from these comics and usually people get a laugh out of what I say.
These comics are mostly set in the house or at preschool. Others stories tend to be fantasies, parodies of traditional stories or the family on vacation. There are lots of unique characters that have to put up with KS in these stories like Nene who’s always violently punching her plush-toy rabbit to release her stress (is this normal behavior for a four-year old?).
Most people have the image that these comics were intended for children but that’s not so! The early versions are full of sexual innuendo that would make any parent cringe if they caught their children saying these things in public. A good example is in KS number one. He’s on the the train reading signs... the first signs say “cake” and “fruit”. The next signs say “hotel”, “soap” and “toys” (soap refers to “soapland” which is a brothel). Heh heh. Can you imagine trying to answer your kid what “soap” means?
There a TV show of this. It’s toned downed significantly so I’d strongly recommend reading the comic instead.
The movie which I watched today at home was alright. In the story KS looks exactly like the prince of Buriburi land who’s been kidnapped. KS and his family are also kidnapped by a group of transexuals. They need to use KS and the prince to open a secret door in a inca-tomb type place that leads to treasure and magic pots that’ll make a magic genie pop out and grant a wish. The story is based on a short story from the comic.
The structure of the movie has a few improbable moments but hey, it’s a kid’s movie so no need to think too deeply about these things.
The music is a trite boring being composed on a synthesizer. The movie is not as adventurous as the other ones because it doesn’t get the other preschool kids involved, relying on KS and his parents to entertain us. There’s one character (a sexy secret agent that’s trying to get the captured prince back) who has a few good fight scenes. She wears some pretty short skirts so KS is always happy to be around her.
One scene that I liked was when the family and kidnappers travel in the tomb and have to go through various obstacles. The perspective that are drawn are pretty jaw dropping as they are drawn from extreme angles (usually way up).
The movie has one “musical” type scene which didn’t really fit in well.
Come to think of it, the movie didn’t have any twist or turns that surprised me. Well, maybe the movie wasn’t alright but rather average.
Well, if you have a chance, I strongly recommend reading KS. You’ll have a few good laughs and if you’re a parent you might be able to remember all the whacky things your kid(s) did when he/she/they were young.
クレヨンしんちゃん
