I want to say to the fans of "Osomatsu-san. This one is even worse!" Shu Matsubara, who also produces the anime "Osomatsu-san," and comedian Okawara talk about the story behind the screenplay adaptation of the movie "Chingyukki.

The legendary gag manga "Jinyuuki: Taro and his Wonderful Friends" by Man☆Gataro was serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1990, and sold a total of 4 million copies in the series. The main character is Yamada Taro, a huge and ferocious boy who manipulates supernatural powers. The monk Genjo uses his legal powers to suppress Taro's magical powers, but Taro goes on a rampage wherever he is taken. Man☆Gataro's gags are characterized by a touch that can be described as a tour de force and erotic nonsense that is the very picture of vulgarity. It is said that it would be difficult to make a live-action version of the manga, and there have been many stories of live-action versions of the manga, but they have not been made into a live-action movie.

However, Yudai Yamaguchi, the director of "Jigoku Koshien" and "Man☆Gataro Show: Babaa Zone (and others)," has decided to direct the movie "Chin Yuuki," making the live-action adaptation of "Chin Yuuki" a reality. We asked two of the screenplay writers, Okawara of the comedy trio "Onigashima" and Shu Matsubara, a broadcaster who is also currently working on the series composition and screenplay of the anime "Osomatsu-san," to talk about the difficulties and joys involved in adapting the legendary gag manga into a screenplay.

───How did the two of you come to write the screenplay for the movie "Chin Yuuki"?

Matsubara: Director Yudai Yamaguchi and I lived near each other and had been drinking together for several years. One day, he asked me if I wanted to do a movie.　It's a live-action film of "Chin Yuuki. (laughs). But I thought that director Yamaguchi would write the script as a team, so I was a little more relaxed about it. I accepted the offer as if I was participating in the project rather than writing the script. The director asked if there was anyone else for the script, so I invited him to the live performance at Onigashima, where I was in the composition team at the time, and told him that I absolutely loved it.

───What was Director Yamaguchi's reaction?

Matsubara He was in love with one of the skits. After the live performance, he said, "That skit was amazing. I want to introduce the person who wrote it to the script team," and he made a passionate plea.

Okawara: At that concert, I met Director Yamaguchi for the first time. I was surprised when I heard that you were going to write a script for a movie.

Matsubara I was surprised for about two or three weeks (laughs).

Okawara I thought the director was crazy (laughs). I was surprised and, to be honest, impressed that a director who had made many films would let a comedian who had never written a film script write one. But the director said, "I thought it was Ookawara-kun when I saw the comedy," and the comedy was sloppy!

Matsubara Yes, yes (laughs).

Okawara But that was one of my favorite skits to write, so I was happy to hear his praise. I had known Matsu-chan (Matsubara) for about 10 years, and he had even asked me to be a writer for his live performances, so I believed that what Matsu-chan said would be okay.

──What were the initial difficulties in adapting the original story "Chin-Yu-Ki: Taro and His Wonderful Friends" into a movie script?

Matsubara There are too many. All of them (laughs).

Okawara I read the original work when I was a child, and I have great respect for it. It is a manga that overturned the concept of manga up to that point. But I think "Chin Yuuki" was interesting because it was a manga. So it is absolutely impossible to make it that interesting in a movie. The three of us discussed the idea of making it interesting from a different vector.

Matsubara When I read the original story again to write the film, I just laughed and closed the book (laughs). (Laughs) I thought, "Oh, that was so funny, ....... (laughs). The story is rather simple, so it doesn't develop too fast.

Okawara The initial impact of the story is too strong, and most of the rest of the scenes are bar fights.

Matsubara: It was difficult to find the right balance between how much to take from the original story and how much to give up, so Director Yamaguchi and I had detailed discussions as we worked on the film.

──What parts of the film were you in charge of, Mr. Okawara and Mr. Matsubara?

Ookawara: First of all, I wrote the first draft in a rush. Matsu-chan adjusted the details and gave it shape.

Matsubara: Since Mr. Okawara usually writes comedy, he writes only the basic lines of the script. In the case of a comedy, the elements of a script are things that can be shared with your partner during rehearsals. Dialogue is interesting, which is what I thought was amazing when I read what you had written.

Okawara I would be horrified if I had to do it alone.

Matsubara I am very glad that we were able to do it together.

──How did the casting influence the script?

Matsubara The original Yamada Taro has a strong pictorial impact and his loud voice is funny, so the real hurdle was how to express the character in the live-action version. Taro is not just a bad guy, but he also shows a surprisingly manly side. But when I heard that Kenichi Matsuyama was going to play the role, I thought, "He's got character. I was relieved to hear that Kenichi Matsuyama was going to play the role.

Okawara: Even in the original story, Taro's personality and emotions are invisible. But since it was based on the original story, I didn't want to mess with Taro's character too much. That said, Ryusho (Junpei Mizobata) is an original character in the film, so it was fun to add emotions to him. I left a lot of the characterization of Taro to Mr. Matsuyama.

Matsubara: Genjo is a monk, but his lines are rather harsh, so from the beginning, the three of us talked about how we wanted a woman to play the role. We felt that having a woman say the lines would create a gap and make the lines stand out, and thanks to Kana Kurashina, it turned out to be a great one (laughs). Mr. Okawara is also in the film as Ryusho's aide, but what about his partner, I Am Noda, who plays the more delicious Takeshi?

Okawara Takeshi is exactly the kind of role that is meant for Noda. He is almost always that kind of character in his everyday comedy, so I thought it was a perfect fit. Hiroki Konno is also in a role that only he could play. I wrote these parts almost by guesswork. They are easy people to work with.

─ You both work in the field of comedy, what did you find interesting or difficult about making a film about laughter?

Okawara: What I felt this time was that professional actors are very careful in their acting. That is the biggest difference from comedy acting. Comedians do it much more smoothly. Actors have a high basic level of acting, so if I have another chance to write a script like this, I might write it with the idea that actors would perform.

Matsubara I used to think that it would be difficult if the actors did it because it would be too graphic, or that the gags would become weak if I kept the emotional line, but now I have stopped thinking about those things (laughs). (Laughs.) I leave the final decision to the director. It's no use for me, a first-year screenwriter, to think about this and that.

─ ─ The popular anime "Osomatsu-san," for which you wrote the screenplay, is also full of gags throughout the film.

Matsubara: I felt that live-action films have a wider range of possibilities. It has the potential to go wild. The way the scene goes, the way the actors say things, the makeup, and if it looks interesting, you can just shoot it. That is not possible with animation. Of course, there are advantages unique to anime.

─ ─ After seeing "Osomatsu-san" and watching the movie "Chin-Yu-Ki," I realized that there is much more to your work.

Matsubara I think there are some "Osomatsu-san" fans who will come to see the "Chinyuuki" movie, and I would like to tell them to enjoy it because the live-action version of a gag story is even worse than the anime version (laughs). If you like the cute drawings of "Osomatsu-san," please be careful about watching "Chin-Yu-Ki. If you usually think "Osomatsu-san" is terrible, please watch "Chinyuuki" as well. I think it will fill your stomach.

─ ─ So this is a movie that is drawing the attention of all kinds of people, including Man☆Gataro fans, Kenichi Matsuyama fans, and "Osomatsu-san" fans.

Matsubara: Although all the things we are doing are very stimulating, we were able to successfully land on an entertainment that can be enjoyed casually by all audiences. I am very confident about this. I think that is the most interesting pattern, so please try it!

Okawara: There are times when you are tired from a relationship and want to watch a movie that will empty your mind. Chinyuuki" is just such a movie. It's enough to laugh as much as you can while munching on popcorn!

Profile

Okawara was born on May 31, 1977 in Saitama Prefecture. Leader of the comedy trio "Onigashima. After graduating from the 7th term of JCA, the school of Production Jinrikisha, he formed Onigashima with I Am Noda and Takashi Wada in 2004. He made his first appearance in the finals at the King of Contest 2011. In the King of Contest 2013, he won second place.

Matsubara Shu / Born on August 27, 1981 in Shiga Prefecture. Broadcast writer and scriptwriter. He started his career as a postcard writer for "Ninety Nine's All Night Nippon" and became a broadcaster. He has written many stories for variety shows such as "Enta no Kamisama" (God of Entertainment), Anjash, and Tokyo03. He has also worked on dramas such as "Starring Sammers," "NMB48: Gayinin! and the series composition and screenplay for the animations "Gintama°" and "Osomatsu-san".

Work Information

Chinyuuki

Roadshow from 2/27 (Sat.) at Shinjuku Wald 9 and other theaters nationwide!

Cast: Kenichi Matsuyama, Kana Kurashina, Junpei Mizobata, Ryosei Tayama, Takashi Sasano, Yoichi Onsui, Pierre Taki

Director/Editor: Yudai Yamaguchi

Based on the novel by Man☆Gataro "Chin-Yu-Ki: Taro and his Wonderful Friends" (published by Shueisha)

Script: Okawara / Shu Matsubara, Planning/General Producer: Zero Kamiya, Photography: Jun Fukumoto, Lighting: Tokumitsu Ichikawa, Sound: Hirosuke Saijo, Art: Noboru Fukuda, Music: Nobuhiko Morino

(c) Man☆Gataro/Shueisha, "Chin-Yu-Ki" Production Committee