Bayside Shakedown: The Movie
Encyclopedia
was a Japanese police drama / comedy movie released in October 1998. The movie was based on the hit TV series Bayside Shakedown
which had just finished airing roughly a year and a half before. Like the TV series, the movie satirizes the bureaucracy and red tape
which plague the Japanese police force, as well as certain elements of Japanese society, while at the same time avoiding falling into the typical formula of car chases and gunbattles that define most police dramas.
Shortly after the movie begins, a body is found floating in a river near the edge of the precinct's jurisdiction. However in the spirit of the series, the main concern of the officers on the scene is getting to the body before their counterparts from the other precinct on the other side of the river get to it. The scene eventually degenerates into a cross-river shouting match over bullhorns between the officers from the two precincts. The brass at Wangan Station turn out to be less than happy when their officers manage to recover the body (which has had a teddy bear
crudely stuffed into its stomach) as it would require a special investigation, which would drain more from the station's already tight budget
. At the same time, the station is in an uproar as officers find that someone has been stealing the receipts for on the job expenses that they had originally intended to file for reimbursement.
Things are further complicated when the Assistant Commissioner is kidnapped and the investigative team from Metropolitan Police headquarters moves into Wangan Station. The investigation is led by Superintendent Shinji Muroi, whom Aoshima befriended in the TV series. Having promised Aoshima that he would try to reform the bureaucratic mess within the police department and force the local and headquarters officers to work together as equals, Muroi finds that his promise increasingly hard to keep as his decisions are continuously overruled from above by superiors who insist on playing everything by the book. It becomes apparent that Muroi's superiors are setting him up to take the fall in the event the investigation fails.
The stratification in the department becomes apparent when the investigators from headquarters immediately delegate the most menial of tasks to the local officers, while receiving special treatment enjoying gourmet bento
s while the locals are forced to dine on instant ramen
. The locals are forced to work multiple cases at the same time, and find themselves berated by their superiors when mistakes are inevitably made.
The film goes on to take on issues such as disaffected youth unable to differentiate between reality and video games, overprotective parents, strange internet subcultures; and on more lighthearted notes, the lack of sidearms, otaku
obsessed with cosplay
, media frenzies, and even overtly melodramatic movie scenes, as Aoshima and his fellow officers continue to press on through the absurdity.
Bayside Shakedown
was a Japanese police drama/comedy series originally broadcast by the Fuji Television group in 1997. The series was so popular that five cinematic-release movies were made following the end of the TV series, the first in 1998, the second in 2003, the third and fourth in 2005, and the fifth...
which had just finished airing roughly a year and a half before. Like the TV series, the movie satirizes the bureaucracy and red tape
Red tape
Red tape is excessive regulation or rigid conformity to formal rules that is considered redundant or bureaucratic and hinders or prevents action or decision-making...
which plague the Japanese police force, as well as certain elements of Japanese society, while at the same time avoiding falling into the typical formula of car chases and gunbattles that define most police dramas.
Plot
The movie continues a few months after the end of the TV series. The main character Detective Sergeant Shunsaku Aoshima has worked his way back up into the investigative division of the Wangan Precinct of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, after being demoted back to patrol duty for insubordination.Shortly after the movie begins, a body is found floating in a river near the edge of the precinct's jurisdiction. However in the spirit of the series, the main concern of the officers on the scene is getting to the body before their counterparts from the other precinct on the other side of the river get to it. The scene eventually degenerates into a cross-river shouting match over bullhorns between the officers from the two precincts. The brass at Wangan Station turn out to be less than happy when their officers manage to recover the body (which has had a teddy bear
Teddy bear
The teddy bear is a stuffed toy bear. They are usually stuffed with soft, white cotton and have smooth and soft fur. It is an enduring form of a stuffed animal in many countries, often serving the purpose of entertaining children. In recent times, some teddy bears have become collector's items...
crudely stuffed into its stomach) as it would require a special investigation, which would drain more from the station's already tight budget
Budget
A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. A budget is an important concept in microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods...
. At the same time, the station is in an uproar as officers find that someone has been stealing the receipts for on the job expenses that they had originally intended to file for reimbursement.
Things are further complicated when the Assistant Commissioner is kidnapped and the investigative team from Metropolitan Police headquarters moves into Wangan Station. The investigation is led by Superintendent Shinji Muroi, whom Aoshima befriended in the TV series. Having promised Aoshima that he would try to reform the bureaucratic mess within the police department and force the local and headquarters officers to work together as equals, Muroi finds that his promise increasingly hard to keep as his decisions are continuously overruled from above by superiors who insist on playing everything by the book. It becomes apparent that Muroi's superiors are setting him up to take the fall in the event the investigation fails.
The stratification in the department becomes apparent when the investigators from headquarters immediately delegate the most menial of tasks to the local officers, while receiving special treatment enjoying gourmet bento
Bento
is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container. Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware...
s while the locals are forced to dine on instant ramen
Ramen
is a Japanese noodle dish. It consists of Chinese-style wheat noodles served in a meat- or fish-based broth, often flavored with soy sauce or miso, and uses toppings such as , , kamaboko, green onions, and occasionally corn...
. The locals are forced to work multiple cases at the same time, and find themselves berated by their superiors when mistakes are inevitably made.
The film goes on to take on issues such as disaffected youth unable to differentiate between reality and video games, overprotective parents, strange internet subcultures; and on more lighthearted notes, the lack of sidearms, otaku
Otaku
is a Japanese term used to refer to people with obsessive interests, particularly anime, manga or video games.- Etymology :Otaku is derived from a Japanese term for another's house or family , which is also used as an honorific second-person pronoun...
obsessed with cosplay
Cosplay
, short for "costume play", is a type of performance art in which participants don costumes and accessories to represent a specific character or idea. Characters are often drawn from popular fiction in Japan, but recent trends have included American cartoons and science fiction...
, media frenzies, and even overtly melodramatic movie scenes, as Aoshima and his fellow officers continue to press on through the absurdity.
Cast
- Sergeant Shunsaku Aoshima: Yuji OdaYuji Odais a Japanese actor and singer.Yuji Oda was born on 13 December 1967 in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. He was born to an upper-middle-class family and attended the private academy of Touin Gakuen. Originally he had a promising career in sports, but had to give it up after a knee injury. He...
- Superintendent Shinji Muroi: Toshiro YanagibaToshiro Yanagibais a Japanese actor. He had major roles in several TV drama series such as Bayside Shakedown.- External links :*...
- Sergeant Sumire Onda: Eri FukatsuEri FukatsuEri Fukatsu , nicknamed , is a Japanese actress.Eri Fukatsu was born in Ōita, Ōita, Japan. Among other things, she has appeared in the TV series and the subsequent spin-off movies of the series. She is managed by Amuse Inc...
- Inspector Masayoshi Mashita: Yusuke Santamaria
- Manami Hyuga: Kyōko KoizumiKyoko Koizumi' is a Japanese singer and actress. Her music is released through Victor Entertainment . She is also known by the nickname Kyon Kyon. She had singles reach the Top ten for 12 consecutive years between 1983 and 1994, a female solo artist record, until this was broken by Namie Amuro...
- Senior Inspector Heihachiro Waku: Chosuke IkariyaChosuke Ikariyawas a Japanese comedian and film actor, and leader of the Owarai comedy group The Drifters. His nickname was .-1931–1962: Early career:Chōsuke Ikariya was born with the name of on November 1, 1931 in Tokyo, Japan. During the war his family moved from their home in Sumida, Tokyo to the countryside...
- Section Chief Uozumi: Kenta SatoiKenta Satoi, born May 14, 1957 in the Chiba Prefecture, Japan, is a Japanese theatre and film actor. His roles most often consist of either father-type roles, or conversely, villain roles in police dramas and action movies...
- Superintendent Shinjo: Toshio KakeiToshio Kakeiis a Japanese actor. He had major roles in several TV drama series such as Bayside Shakedown.Kakei graduated from Osaka University of Arts.- External links :*...
- Chief Kanda: Soichiro Kitamura
- Division Chief Hakamada: Takehiko Ono
- Assistant Chief Akiyama: Satoru Saito