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Shiina Kippei is John Rain | April 16, 2008 |
 Fictional Japanese-American assassin John Rain is coming to the big screen. Shiina Kippei (43) is to star in a mostly Japanese-language adaptation of "Rain Fall," the first book in the John Rain series by thriller writer Barry Eisler. Rain, an ex-US Special Forces hit man who "may not be a good man, but he's good at what he does" finds himself protecting the daughter of one of his victims against assassination by the CIA. Though some fans initially speculated that he might play the lead, British star Gary Oldman (50) has been named to play Rain's CIA nemesis William Holtzer. Max Mannix is both writing the script and directing. Shiina, an established though hardly high-profile actor, has appeared in over 30 movies including "Shinobi" (2005) and "Sakuran" (2007). Perhaps appropriately for his latest role, he is from the famous ninja city of Iga in Mie Prefecture (more trivially, he starred in a 2007 stage version of the Tom Cruise movie "Rain Man"). In 2003, he married actress Yamamoto Mirai (33), his co-star in the TV drama "Blackout" and daughter of the famous fashion designer Yamamoto Kansai (64). He also works as a movie producer, using his real name Iwaki Masayoshi. More about this movie on our Japan Movies forum.
• Takahashi Yuya (28), the son of actress Mita Yoshiko (66) will serve an 18-month prison sentence for a third drug-related offense. His lawyer had appealed the January sentence, saying the defendant needed to undergo rehabilitation, but the appeal was withdrawn earlier this month as his condition has improved. Takahashi was arrested for the third time last November after taking "kakuseizai" (stimulant drugs) in the toilet of a Tokyo convenience store.
• Fuji TV and the Shochiku movie studio are betting that the next hit to be born from a "keitai shosetsu," or novel written on a mobile phone, is "Akai Ito" (Red Thread). The title comes from the myth (originally from China) that couples who are destined to be together are joined by an invisible red thread. In this case, the soulmates are junior high school students Mei and Atsushi, who must overcome drugs, rape and attempted suicide in order to be together. The love story was an online hit in 2006 and later published as a series of five books which sold 1.8 million copies. Now it is to be made into a TV drama series which will air during the winter season and closely tied into a theatrical release. The plot will intertwine between the two, reaching a finale with the conclusion of the TV series. Unlike other recent drama/movie hits such as "Densha Otoko" or "Sekai no Chuushinde, Ai wo Sakebu," this project will feature the same cast and staff members. The theme song for both will be performed by up-and-coming Okinawan indie band HY.
• Freelance announcer Ikushima Hiroshi (57) said yesterday that he has qualified as a "bousaishi", a trained rescuer with the requisite skills to save lives in the event of a disaster. He said he underwent the course after being stuck on a bullet train for six hours following a major earthquake in Niigata in October, 2004.
• U.S. rock bands Huey Lewis & the News and Chicago are performing a series of joint concerts across Japan this month. They kicked off in Hiroshima on Monday and will play shows in Osaka, Yokohama and Tokyo, where local guitarist Hotei Tomoyasu is due to appear as a guest. And Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli (49) performed the first of two concerts at the Tokyo International Forum last night. It's his second visit to Japan and the first since 2000.
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