On November 18, 38 members of AKB48 including members Oshima Yuko, Kashiwagi Yuki, and Akimoto Sayaka appeared at a special AKB48 members-only screening of “Aku no Kyoten,” which stars actor Ito Hideaki. While many members were excited, Oshima left the theater shortly after the film began playing due to the shocking subject matter of the film, which involves a teacher who murders his students. Oshima revealed frankly that, “I do not like this film. Each time a life was taken away, I could not stop crying. There are people who say that it is just a movie, but for me, it is unbearable. I’m sorry.”
The special AKB48 screening was planned since Ito appeared as an English teacher in AKB48’s 12th single “Namida Surprise!” (2009) and on the day of the screening, Ito, who rushed to the screening, and his former AKB48 students quickly returned to their “teacher-student relations.”
After the screening, Ito appeared on stage with a shotgun in hand, which appeared to have scared some of the AKB members. Kashiwagi Yuki stated with a bitter smile, “As the shocking images continued, I unfortunately shut my eyes unintentionally, and missed parts of the film all the way to the end. Hideaki-san was completely different from when he appeared in ‘Namida Surprise!’ and transformed into a character that is unfathomable.” Akimoto Sayaka’s excitement appeared to have cooled as she stated, “This is the first time I have seen a film this scary. Moreover, when Hideaki-san appeared on stage with a shotgun, it was truly terrifying.”
Ito, who spoke with the AKB members, revealed the challenges of filming with, “I am truly happy that a nationally beloved idol group like everyone here came to see my film. As I put all of my efforts into this film, I am moved that everyone came together to watch the film.”
The film also received high critical acclaim abroad as it was given a 4 minute 30 second standing ovation at the Festival Internazionale del Film di Roma (International Rome Film Festival). Domestically, a record-breaking 600,000 people (as of November 18) went to see the film, which led to income projections of ¥2,000,000,000 (approximately USD $24,603,200) and made the film a big hit.
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Source and Image: Oricon
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