Yaji and Kita: The Midnight Pilgrims

Yaji and Kita: The Midnight Pligrims
Directed by	Kankuro Kudo
Produced by	Mitsuru Uda Yoshinori Fujita
Written by	Kotobuki Shiriagari (original story) Kankuro Kudo (screenplay)
Starring	Tomoya Nagase Shichinosuke Nakamura Eiko Koike Riki Takeuchi Suzuki Matsuo Kankuro Nakamura
Music by	Zazen Boys
Cinematography	Toshiyasu Yamanaka
Distributed by	Asmik Ace
Running time	124 min.
Language	Japanese
Budget	(estimated)

Yaji and Kita: The Midnight Pilgrims (真夜中の弥次さん喜多さん, Mayonaka no Yaji-san Kita-san^?) is a 2005 Japanese film directed by Kudo Kankuro. The film stars several well-known and highly respected Japanese actors.

The story follows two Edo-era gay men, Yaji Robei (Yaji) and Kita Hachi (Kita), on a pilgrimage to Ise Shrine. It is loosely based on the Tōkaidōchū Hizakurige.

Plot

Yaji and Kita are two men who live in Edo. They are deeply in love. Yaji is married to a woman, while Kita is an actor addicted to various drugs.

One day, they receive an advertisement for the Grand Shrine at Ise, and decide to set out on a pilgrimage there, hoping to cure Kita of his drug addiction. They set out on a modern motorcycle but are forced to turn back and walk the Tōkaidō road to Ise, encountering various characters and obstacles along the way.

Cast

• Yaji: Nagase Tomoya from the band TOKIO
• Kita: Nakamura Shichinosuke, a well-known kabuki actor
• Kin-kin: Sadao Abe
• Ohatsu: Koike Eiko, a Japanese idol
• Hige no oiran (the bearded courtesan): Suzuki Matsuo
• King Arthur: Nakamura Kanzaburō, a kabuki actor
• Bartender: Arata
• Bartender's wife: Aso Kumiko
• Spirit of the dead: Arakawa Yoshiyoshi
• Non-non: Emoto Tasuku
• Naniwa Hotto: Itsuji Itao
• Foreman: Iwamatsu Ryō
• Vendor: Minagawa Sarutoki
• Landlady: Morishita Aiko
• Newsdealer: Namase Katsuhisa
• Tourists: Ogi Hiroaki, Yahagi Ken
• Samurai: Omori Nao
• Oyuki: Shimizu Yumi
• Tower Phonographs owner: Shiriagari Kotobuki
• Takeuchi Riki: Kimura Shonoshin
• Policeman: Terajima Susumu
• Fantom Yaji: Tsumabuki Satoshi
• Old man: Umezu Kazuo
• Ochin: Yamaguchi Tomomitsu

External links

• official site (written in Japanese)
• IMDb entry