Kanaria (Canary) poster & wallpaper
Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Hoshi Ishida, Mitsuki Tanimura, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Miyako Koda, Ryo Tsugumi ... see more see more... , Noriko Eguchi , Yukiko Inoue , Mayako Koda , Kenji Mizuhashi , Akihiko Shiota , Toru Shinagawa

Inspired by the deadly sarin gas attacks on a Tokyo subway back in 1995, director Akihiko Shiota's introspective psychological drama follows the journey of a young boy attempting to reconnect with his... read more read more... estranged mother and sister after a horrific terrorist attack. The Nirvana cult has committed an unspeakable act, and now that the group has been disbanded, its child members are being taken in by welfare services. Twelve-year-old Koichi (Hoshi Ishida) is just such a child. His father was a member of the Nirvana cult, and now Koichi has no one to turn to. Enraged and confused at being made a faceless ward of the state, Koichi flees from welfare services in an attempt to track down his sister, who has recently moved to Tokyo with their grandfather. Along the way, Koichi crosses paths with pretty runaway Yuki (Mitsuki Tanimura), who survives on the streets by selling her body. Though the two children are initially able to connect over the fact that they have both lost one parent and suffered terrible mistreatment at the hands of the other, Yuki's position in life gives her a kind of tentative erotic power, while Koichi's mind remains irreparably damaged due to the months of physical and mental intimidation he was forced to endure while living with the Nirvana cult. Together, these two forgotten children struggle to find their way in a society in which the weak are exploited and the vulnerable left to fend for themselves. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Flixster Users

60% liked it

234 ratings

Critics

67% liked it

6 critics

Unrated, 2 hr. 12 min.

Directed by: Akihiko Shiota, Mitsuki Tanimura

Release Date: July 25, 2008

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: January 6, 2009

Stats: 10 reviews

report incorrect info

Photos

None yet... Got one?

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (10)

  • sitenoise
    September 21, 2009
    sitenoise
    Another film by Akihiko Shiota, director of Harmful Insect. It had some moments but nothing special for me. I'm not sure what to think of Shiota at this point. I appreciate what he is trying to explore: disaffected, abused and neglected youth and all that, but I'm not convinced h... read moree's good at it yet. Harmful Insect would have been a lot less interesting without Aoi Miyazaki. I think Mitsuki Tanimura did a good job in Canary, Hoshi Ishida not so much, but his character was the brooding, doesn't-say-much type, which is difficult for a teenager to pull off (unless you're Aoi Miyazaki).

    I will confess that the cultural pointers were lost on me ... so there's that, I mean, if they were supposed to be specific. Cultural historians and professional film critics (and Japanese folks) might enjoy this film more than I did. I'm not giving upon Shiota but I'm also not ready to call him a director to look out for.

View All Kanaria (Canary) Reviews

Critic Reviews

Jeannette Catsoulis
July 25, 2008
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times

If the writer-director, Akihiko Shiota, sometimes strains too hard for mythic import, his patience is a gift. As Yuki watches a blind woman fashion an origami bird, the characters' connection to a sim...

Nick Pinkerton
July 23, 2008
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice

I was counting off the minutes long before a silly "saved from the blessings of civilization" non-ending. Full Review

Kam Williams
July 25, 2008
Kam Williams, NewsBlaze

The Orient's relatively-eloquent answer to Eminem's 8-Mile and 50-Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin', replete with gangsta' rap on the soundtrack. Full Review

Louis Proyect
July 25, 2008
Louis Proyect, rec.arts.movies.reviews

Gripping "road movie" featuring two remarkably well-developed 12 year old characters played consummately by two gifted child actors. Set against backdrop of infamous Tokyo subway sarin massacre cult. Full Review

David Fear
July 24, 2008
David Fear, Time Out New York

It lacks the punch of Shiota's previous explorations of traumatized teen spirits, but the film still leaves bruises in all the right places. Full Review

Simon Abrams
July 23, 2008
Simon Abrams, New York Press

In Canary, the audience is encouraged to sit back and allow sleepily serene scenes of quiet isolation to limit their opinions to tranquil tsk-tsks. Full Review

Ronnie Scheib
July 30, 2008
Ronnie Scheib, Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Cast

More Like This

This list looks lonely.
Add a suggestion!

Facts

No facts approved yet. Be the first

Kanaria (Canary) : Watch Free on TV

Movie Quizzes

No quizzes for Kanaria (Canary). Want to create one?

Video Clips

No video clips yet. Want to upload one?

Meet Other Fans

Add Kanaria (Canary) to favorites

Recent News

No recent headlines. Got one?

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

No skins yet. Interested in creating one?