A somewhat entertaining comedy mixed
with melodrama and also a bit too sweet for my cynical taste, too sugary
and too
sentimental and with some too syrupy music too, yuck! But .... it had
it's moments and the location for the shoot was
beautiful. The film takes place on the volcanic Hachijo-jima Island
one of the Izu Seven Islands in the Tokyo prefecture.
The Koreans and the Japanese filmmakers are experts
on making feel-good comedies based on the flimsiest of ideas, and
I accept it almost every time. But sometimes, as in this case, it can
feel a bit strained and like boiling soup on a nail.
Aha, guys let's make a film .... about .... eeeh .... a Bento box ....
with aaah .... with funny looking food ! Yes, let's do it !
"Bento Harassment" is a comedy-drama about
the struggle between a middle-aged mother and her rebellious teenage
daughter. A bitter fight that has been going on for years where the
girl won't talk with her mother or acknowledge her
her in any way. Finally the mother have had enough and promises the
girl that if she doesn't change her ways she will do
anything to annoy her until the girl will behave good at home.
Mother Mochimaru (Ryoko Shinohara) in her mid 40's is
a widow and have struggled on her own to raise and provide
for her two daughters Futaba (Kyoko Yoshine) and Wakaba (Rena Matsui)
and have two jobs to manage to do it, one
at a bakery and one at a restaurant at night. The elder daughter Wakaba
has moved out but the highschool girl Futaba
still lives with her mother. Mochimaru is upset over how troublesome
her daughter is with their relation that almost
resembles a war. She decides to do anything to annoy Futaba, but how
to do it ?
The answer: a wildly over-elaborated Bento box where
the food looks like pieces of art, something which Futabas
friends at school enjoys very much. Besides working two jobs Mother
M. now also has to stay up late nights to think
out new ideas for the boxes and to make the food for Futaba, and she
also starts up an Internet blog - The Bento
Harassment Blog where people share their ideas for Bento boxes.
The film is presented in anamorphic widescreen 1.85:1
with 5.1 DD japanese audio and english subtitles, region 3
with a Teaser, a Trailer and a Photo gallery as extras
