The Man Who Stole the Sun (1979) User Reviews

The criticisms of this film are ridiculous.

[ebossert · 9/10 · 18 August 2013]

A highschool science teacher decides to make an atomic bomb in his apartment. The opening half hour of this movie is erratic, making it difficult to predict where the story is going or what will ultimately happen. A nice blend of dark thrills and black humor is what makes this one special. It juxtaposes tonal shifts in convincing fashion. The protagonist is an unorthodox mad scientist who is very likable and charismatic. There are some very interesting sequences in this, like the lengthy plutonium experiments and bomb construction. Most of the film is realistic but even the more wildly, intentionally unrealistic moments are entertaining in their craziness. There are also some subtleties that one will miss if they are not paying close attention. Performances are great and the ending is ballsy.

Some of the criticisms that I've read for this film have annoyed me. It's like most of the negative reviews are coming from people who are demanding that every element of the film be easily categorized into tiny little boxes of familiarity and traditional filmmaking styles. Take the protagonist's philosophy as one example. We get a very good feel for his character throughout the film. He's an unhinged yet likable science teacher, but according to some critics he's apparently not "properly developed" because he doesn't come out and tell everyone exactly why he made the bomb. Well, why does he need a reason anyway? I thought one of the points of the film was that he didn't know what to do with the bomb after he made it. He even asks the radio DJ to poll her listeners so he can get some ideas! Come on, people. Did you really want him to make a long-winded nationalistic or philosophical speech at the end? I'm glad he didn't. In fact, I find it thought-provoking and refreshing that I have difficulty identifying exactly why he did it. And guess what? That was probably the WHOLE POINT OF THE MOVIE!

Another ridiculous criticism is one of those oft-parroted dumb ones that I'll never understand. Due to the black humor and unrealistic moments, there are tonal shifts throughout. Of course, viewers who need their movies carbon-copied in Hollywood fashion will have a problem with this because "the movie doesn't know what it wants to be." Yeesh! Okay, do you really want every movie to be easily categorized as a "comedy" or a "drama" or a "thriller"? Do you really want every movie to be easily categorized as "realistic" or "unrealistic"? Sure, let's just eliminate genre-benders all together and we'll be left with a bunch of boring, predictable films. But at least we can feel good about ourselves because then we can properly categorize them into tiny little boxes. Listen people, the tonal shifts are one reason this film is fun to watch. The same is true with the wild shifts between realism and unrealism. The final half-hour (that everyone complains about) gave me more surprises than the last three dozen "single genre" films I've seen recently.

This film refuses to limit itself, and that's why it's so entertaining and impressive.

Fun, Overblown Nuclear Thriller

[lovegnu · 8/10 · 13 January 2006]

Look out for this hilariously overblown, big-budget Japanese film from the 70s, in which a trendy young high-school science teacher somehow makes a nuclear bomb in his Tokyo studio apartment, in order to hold the world to ransom. The bubble-gum blowing anti-hero is played by then pop-star Julie (a guy despite the girl's name) who looks more like John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever than any school-teachers I remember. The film, (co-written by "Taxi-Driver" writer Paul Schrader's brother) plays on the public's fear of nuclear weapons, but whether or not you're scared depends on how far you're willing to suspend your disbelief. After some early attempts at political commentary, it turns into a full-blown action film, with endless jaw-dropping stunts. Julie single-handedly hijacks a power station to steal plutonium for the bomb, and the cop in hot pursuit throughout the movie (a brilliant Bunta Sugawara)is as tenacious and indestructible as a Terminator as he dodges explosions and jumps from helicopters. Although overlong at 2 and a half hours, this film is constantly mad, unpredictable and unintentionally amusing. Animal lovers beware- Julie does some rather nasty things to his cat in the name of science.

Flawed yet fascinating

[rjobrien_1943 · 7/10 · 8 April 2007]

I watched the Hong Kong DVD release of this film - still available, I believe - which offers reasonable quality, though the Japanese characters have been given Chinese names and the English subtitles are sometimes poor. I thought the first half of the film was intriguing, outlandish, imaginative and weirdly funny. The introduction of a rather irritating DJ character added little to the movie, other than an obligatory romantic interest for the anti-hero. As other reviewers have pointed out, the film goes on too long, offering a succession of action set-pieces that seem at odds with earlier scenes. The main character's motivations remain a mystery and the downbeat ending falls a little flat, given the subject matter. For all these faults, I'd give it another look, but what could have been a great movie slipped away somehow.

The Man Who Stole the Sun (1979)

[mevmijaumau · 5 December 2015]

This is the second and the final film directed by Kazuhiko Hasegawa (excluding a super-obscure pinku film), whose mother was subjected to the Hiroshima radiation while she was pregnant with him. As chance would have it, The Man Who Stole the Sun is a film that deals with nuclear paranoia, its title mirroring the scary idea that practically anyone could make an atomic bomb if determined enough. Some of the footage from the film was cut at government request because the bomb-making instructions were too detailed. The film was co-written by Leonard Schrader (brother of Taxi Driver writer Paul Schrader), who lived in Japan at the time.

The two main characters are polar opposites in terms of their significance in pop-culture. The protagonist is played by Kenji Sawada (aka Julie Sawada), a pop-star and a plain symbol of the new generation, while his rival is played by Bunta Sugiwara, who became famous playing hard-boiled gangsters (one character in this film remarks; "He looks more like a gangster than a cop to me"). Their cat and mouse game makes way for an unpredictable plot, partially set during the actual Communist Party May Day march, where the scenes were mostly shot without permission, and assistant director Kiyoshi Kurosawa (later a famous director of his own) got arrested for throwing fake money off of a building and almost inciting a riot.

Despite its preposterous length, the movie keeps your attention throughout with the help of many tonal shifts. Without pardon it goes from a hostage crisis thriller to a cutesy school drama, action comedy, nuclear thriller, quirky romance with a radio host, experimental lunacy, car chase and finally an epic standoff as a part of an outrageously ballsy and over- the-top finale which makes everything worthwhile in the end. Amazingly strange. I also dig the 70s feel to it, from the soundtrack to the color scheme where everything is seen through pink lens.

great film !!

[bear-48 · 10/10 · 3 April 2001]

Kazuhiko Hasegawa is a great film director.

Though I have been an enthusiastic fan of Kazuhiko Hasegawa's, in the beginning I've had no connection with him, and moreover, I am an ordinary office worker. One day I heard a sad news, "Kubrick is dead", which made me decide to establish Kazuhiko-Hasegawa's website. That's because I believe it is only Hasegawa that can make films like Kubrick's works. After a while, I got a connection with him through the cyberspace, and exchanged opinions each other with e-mails, which we called "e-sessions". One day I suddenly received his phone call. He just said to me, "I want to begin my project on your site"........ Thus I have built up the website to let people submit their scenarios for his new film.

A bombastic bombshell of escapist entertainment

[bock_g · 10/10 · 28 February 2015]

By many accounts, Kazuhiko Hasegawa's second feature film is a bold film, unusually flamboyant for its time (not by Kurosawa standards), and is a milestone in mainstream Japanese cinema. "The Man who stole the sun" was based on a story treatment written by an American screenwriter, Leonard Schrader (of "The Yakuza" fame and the brother of filmmaker Paul Schrader) who lived in Japan at the time. Hasegawa was hired to adapt this idea into a film based on his success from his first feature film, "The Youth Killer" which was hailed as a bold insight into the psyche of a young serial killer. It is interesting to note that Hasegawa was a Hiroshima native who suffered radiation poisoning when he was in his mother's womb as result of the dropping of the atomic bomb (which provides one of the pivotal themes in the film). The starring role of Makoto, the science teacher was given to the Japanese pop diva, Kenji Sawada (also known by his fans as "Julie")whose acting shines on par with his singing. This conscious casting decision (considering how Sawada was at the peak of his solo singing career) characterizes the flamboyant nature of this film. The role of the police officer, Yamashita who chases Makoto toe to toe throughout the film was given to the late Bunta Sugawara (who was known for playing gangster roles) is very over the top, but is a great contrast to the character of Makoto. The plot is quite straight forward a socially awkward science steals plutonium to build his own atomic bomb and threatens the government. Makoto's motivation to use his creation is fittingly unclear and bears some resemblance to a Travis Bickle (a character created by Paul Schrader). The pacing of the film (it is somewhat long, slightly above two and a half hours), somewhat reflects the motivation of Makoto character as the film progresses, the pacing becomes slower (Unusual, given the elaborate car chase shot on location in the middle of Tokyo was the film's climax). These unusual aesthetic choices makes this cult-classic very entertaining in spite of its shortcomings. The film was financially unsuccessful because of it's rather insensitive advertising tag line, (Direct translation "Julie is tough as an atomic bomb") but has gathered a cult following and is considered by some critics as one of the best mainstream Japanese films ever made. This film overall is definitely worth it's praise.

Like the bubble gum Kido seems to blow continuously, the story is finally stretched beyond its natural limits, leaving it with only one thing left to do: burst.

[angelosnow · 6/10 · 13 September 2006]

The Man Who Stole The Sun "Taiyo o nusunda otoko" (1979) The Man Who Stole the Sun is a title which invokes the myth of Prometheus, who stole fire from the Gods to give to man and was duly punished for it. The film revolves around a science teacher, Makato Kido (Kenji Sawada) who steals the secrets of the atom, constructing his own atomic bomb from stolen plutonium and holding Tokyo to ransom.

Kido, the long haired, bubble gum chewing teacher who smokes too much and sleeps in class, goes by the terrorist codename "Nine". A symbolic reference to the eight nations who possess nuclear weapons (America, Soviet Union, England, France, China, India, Israel, South Africa), thus making him, potential nuclear threat number nine. Kido's flawed portrayal is as a man who desires the knowledge and power of an atomic bomb, yet upon attaining it, he is at a loss on what do with it. Subsequently, he calls up the vacuous, pretty radio hostess "Zero" (Kimiko Ikegami) and asks what others would demand if they had a nuclear bomb. The demand: that Rolling Stones would perform in Tokyo.

The Rolling Stones is just one reference which contextually marks this late 1970s film. The other themes of the film: the Vietnam and Cold War, nuclear proliferation and the power of nations over the individual, reflects a social context where the autonomy of the individual was second to government agendas. By giving nuclear power to Kido, the film espouses a very liberal agenda of an individual (or public opinion) being able to assert his will on the government.

Yet, as with many Japanese films, the fascination of the bomb – its raw destructive potential as well as its slow decaying effects – is a constant reminder of what the dangers of such power, placed in the wrong hands, can do. But who can blame them, being the only nation to experience the devastating effects of the atomic bomb? (Apart from South Australia of course, but according to the government, Aborigines don't count). "Prolonged exposure to radiation leads to hair loss, tissue decay and eventual death" Zero tells us. The death of Kido's cat through plutonium poisoning, hair falling out, bleeding gums, nausea, vomiting and finally culminating in Zero's ironic death as an indirect result of the bomb are constant reminders of this.

Cinematically, Tokyo is captured beautifully through filters, portrayed as an almost surreal, blue urban landscape which infests the very streets, office hallways and the panoramic locations. The scenes in which Kido steals the plutonium is one of the highlights, reminiscent of the stills sequence of Chris Marker's La Jetée. Iran and South Korea could even take a few pointers from Kido's plutonium enrichment techniques – heating by home stove-oven.

However, the film falls flat in the last half hour. The director had three chances to resolve the ending, but he forgoes all three. As a result, the film seems to protract itself needlessly. The last few minutes turns almost into a mockery of what the director had worked to build in the first one and a half hours, degenerating into a clichéd Hong Kong-esquire action/comedy car-chase and final violent showdown. It also shatters the audience's presumptions about Kido's character, as he desperately attempts to hold onto the bomb which he has no real use for.

The film finally ends the only way it could be ended at this point – with Kido strolling down the street, atom bomb at his side. Like the bubble gum Kido seems to blow continuously, the atomic bomb (and the story) is finally stretched beyond its natural limits, leaving it with only one thing left to do: burst.

The Man Who Stole The Sun and Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.

[morrison-dylan-fan · 10/10 · 4 September 2019]

Getting off the tracks from Bullet Train (1975),I checked other Japanese films I had waiting to be played with long run-times. Reading other comments of this being the Japanese version of Dr Strangelove,I got set to help the man steal the sun.

View on the film:

Going round the sun for 2 and a half hours, co-writer/(with Leonard "brother of Paul" Schrader ) director Kazuhiko Hasegawa & cinematographer Tatsuo Suzuki keep the rotation topsy-turvy with a thrilling ease to slide genres/styles around, from ultra-stylised multi-coloured, zany Comedy Pop-Art hopping to Kido stealing the nuke, transforming into a gritty close-ups smash-cut car chase and of a cop going nuclear on Kido. Holding the nuke over a long period, Hasegawa finely balances a bright off-beat Comedy atmosphere with vast-wide shots tracking the cops following Kido's demands,and their attempts to pick him from out of a crowd.

Taking the sun to bed with him, the screenplay by Hasegawa and Schrader develops the characterisation of Kido with a refreshing zest, bringing out in the sparkling Black Comedy dialogue Kido's friendly, but peculiar nature, whose stealing of a nuke takes him from being a loner up to his own devices, to Kido stretching out his hand for some level of friendship owing to the nuke.Powered by a wondrous genre bending taking in fears of nukes and promises of the Rolling Stones playing in Japan, the writers keep sending out curve balls,which act to switch gears,and at the same time increase Kido's fever from the simmering comedic,into a thunderous, fabulous boiling point ending. Holding the whole nuke in his hands,Kenji Sawada gives a excellent performance as Kido, who Sawada trims from lively and chirpy to shacking with sickness,and ringing radio shows for advice from listeners over what he should do,as the man who stole the sun.

Somewhat dated film about a teacher who builds an atomic bomb in his apartment will leave you feeling uneasy and nervous

[dbborroughs · 7/10 · 26 August 2006]

Leonard Schrader wrote this story of a high school science teacher who builds his own atomic bomb that has become legendary in some circles as a "lost" classic.

The plot has a high school teacher kidnapped with his class. In the aftermath he presses forward with his desire to build an atomic bomb. Once he's done he uses the bomb to get what he wants, first he demands that baseball games are televised to their conclusion (Which never happened). Later, as the cops struggle to find the teacher, he demands that the Rolling Stones be allowed to play Japan (their drug problems prevented that).

As a lost classic, I think its time has passed, which is not to say that the film isn't worth seeing. This is a good little film. Actually as a terrifying look at something the world maybe staring in the face right now. Its a sobering little film. The idea that someone could build a bomb in their kitchen is frightening. Of course the result of doing it will probably turn deadly for the builder, something you see here (and which was left out of the similar and clearly inferior Manhattan Project).

There are two things that are wrong with the movie. The first thing is its over length. The film runs nearly two and a half hours and to be honest its too much. The second thing is that the film is very much of its time. This is best explained by the demands that teacher makes. The demands are the sort of thing that will cause people to look side ways at the plotting. While I understand the point is to make the demands trivial, they're too much in a time warp. The problems are best described as "movie conventions from the late 70's" which manage to date the film (I guessed the year of release just by looking at how the film was made) even though its unnerving when you really think about it.

Flaws aside this is a movie to try and find (good luck since its damn near impossible to get a hold of). Its a disturbing little movie that will leave you uneasy.

A perfect companion to Oppenheimer

[DanTheMan2150AD · 9/10 · 23 July 2023]

The Man Who Stole the Sun treads the finest of lines in trying to balance its subject matter and tone, but Kazuhiko Hasegawa's controversial movie about nuclear terrorism is a darkly comedic and thrilling satire on a subject once considered unsatiriseable annihilating any form of genre borders in the process. Holding particular resonance for Japanese audiences, as while the country does use nuclear power, it has long held against amassing a nuclear arsenal due to the devastating effects that ended World War II. The movie doesn't stop dead for any form of long-winded nationalistic or philosophical speeches and instead insists on a conceivable reality with seemingly no motivation.

One of only two movies directed by Kazuhiko Hasegawa, which in turn feels like a crime in itself, Hasegawa rewards the viewer with some utterly sublime direction and excellent framing, with plenty of thrilling action set pieces to command his viewer's attention at all times (the car chase feels like it was ripped right out of a Ringo Lam movie). It balances the unorthodox nature and tone of the movie exceptionally well, juxtaposing the shifts with unnatural ease. Complimented by funky and often ill-fitting music by Takayuki Inoue to glorious success.

The performances are all excellent, with Kenji Sawada playing the everyman gone rogue with an endless amount of animosity slowly succumbing to the effects of radiation poisoning making him more and more unpredictable as the movie goes on. But it's the award-winning performance from the stoic and hardened Bunta Sugawara that really captivates me as he normally does in his roles, single-minded and exceptionally driven.

Overall, The Man Who Stole the Sun, even at two and a half hours long, never feels overly long or bloated. The film absolutely refuses to limit itself, and that's why it's so entertaining and impressive.

The Man Who Stole The Sun

[MogwaiMovieReviews · 6/10 · 2 March 2023]

A high school science teacher steals plutonium and builds his own atomic bomb. A game of cat and mouse arises between him and a hard-nosed police detective.

Utterly preposterous stuff, but has moments of great fun, and an unusual East-meets-West sensibility, presumably because of being made entirely in Japan by Japanese folks but written by Paul Schrader's brother Leonard, who inserted some peak-1979-Hollywood car chases and action scenes.

It's not a great film, but it's got a lot going for it, and if you like strange Japanese films you should definitely check it out, as it's hard to think of anything else quite like it.

6½/10.

This is a good thriller!!

[Nam · 8/10 · 22 April 2000]

Very well make... there are car chasing, gun shooting and even more... after watching this movie you may know how to make an atomic bomb!! Try to pick up this film in Video or Vcd.

Fun With Violence and Fantasy - The Man Who Stole the Sun

[arthur_tafero · 6/10 · 1 October 2021]

Make no mistake; this is an extremely violent film. At times, it is even ridiculously violent. There are no protagonists in this film, as all of the main actors and characters have severe limitations for being likeable. The Science teacher who builds a home-made atom bomb is psychotic and cruel. His love? Interest, a female DJ is self-centered and ridiculously irresponsible for her thirst for recognition, and the cop who doggedly tries to trap this fiend is immune to bullets, or so it would seem. Despite these drawbacks, the film is a perverse fantasy piece that easily entertains you for 90 minutes. There are some genuine moments of suspense and tension, but the excessiveness of the violence tends to lessen the impact of the entire film. Not a bad try.

A counterculture movie with a preposterous plot...

[jmaruyama · 5/10 · 21 February 2006]

Hasegawa Kazuhiko's "Taiyo O Nusunda Otoko" (AKA The Man Who Stole The Sun) is an odd film which seems a bit out-of-place as a late 1970's movie. Its counterculture, anti-authority/anti-establishment themes which may have been in good company with early 70's movies like "Serpico","Easy Rider" and "The Deer Hunter" seems somewhat late in coming for a film that was released in 1979. Sawada Kenji has made a career of playing edgy, hippie-like characters who are idealistic to a fault and who end up dying for a cause. His youthful rebel characters are almost as indelible as Matsuda Yusaku's similar characters in the movies. There are a lot of things that make this movie a bit hard to swallow in the credibility department. Can one seriously believe for one minute that Sawada's character Kido Masato, a high school Physics teacher, has the necessary skills and abilities to infiltrate a Japanese Nuclear plant, steal nuclear grade Plutonium, fashion a crude "dirty bomb" and escape capture numerous times from the Police? I also found the ending almost too ridiculous for words. How can Kido survive a major car crash and then a fall from the top of tall building? Sagawara Bunta's dedicated police inspector Yamashita is your atypical police movie standard but Sagawara's usual tough guy intensity is nice to see. I really wanted to see him capture Kido but then again the tone of the movie screamed out that the "villain" would win. I didn't really know what director Hasegawa was trying to get at. Are we supposed to support Sawada's character in his quest to blowup Tokyo? We weren't really given any reasons for his actions. My guess is that he just wanted to "stick it to the man" but this really isn't made very clear. Quite an odd and disturbing movie especially given what's happening in the world now.

Entirely nihilistic filmgoing experience

[PiranianRose · 11 February 2006]

After being held hostage by a dissatisfied citizen, a high school teacher--who is a hopeless bum with no mission in life whatsoever--follows a similar path to express his dissatisfaction: by building an atomic bomb in his apartment. In the end he blows everything up.

What we have here is a totally nihilistic filmgoing experience. The message seems to be that society has fostered dissatisfied citizens who sense no purpose in life. In fact their only sense of achievement can be felt through destruction. Some fingers are pointed to Mr. Big Brother aka the conservative government, which has oppressed the wants of some people, for example by keeping the Rolling Stones out of the country because the band symbolized drugs.

I think (I hope) anyone can see that the main character here is a nut, albeit a highly dangerous one since he could blow up Tokyo with a little ball. The point is that once the sense of purpose in life is lost, all hell breaks loose.

It's a blast

[Jeremy_Urquhart · 9/10 · 24 June 2023]

The best thing that can be said about The Man Who Stole The Sun is that it runs for 2.5 hours and never feels boring or overlong. The worst thing that can be said about it is there's a couple of time where it looks like they were mean to a cat while filming, which is never nice (it's thankfully briefer and less difficult to handle than an infamous scene in Satantango).

It follows a teacher who decides to build an atomic bomb, and then makes a series of demands by threatening to detonate it. It begins as a satirical crime movie, gradually morphs into a thriller, and then explodes into action in the last half-hour or so. Along the way, it can be pretty funny at times, having a tone where calling it light or non-serious would maybe feel inaccurate, but it's definitely fun (while being kind of dark, once you step back and look at the whole thing).

All in all, it's a riot. It's rare to get a movie that's around (or over) two and a half hours where I don't ever feel ready for it to end, which I think is a testament to how well-paced and creative this is, above all else just being very entertaining. As much as I'm looking forward to Oppenheimer, I wouldn't be surprised if this is the best movie about atomic weapons that I watch in 2023.

Good start, weak middle, poor end

[Banzaemon · 5/10 · 10 July 2007]

The man who stole the sun starts well. Almost like a Japanese 'Taxi Driver' with a high school teacher making an atom bomb in his house. Why does he do it? No idea. Its never explained. The film suffers from personality crisis and shifts constantly. Is the hero a nice guy? Seems to be, everything we know about him says yes. oh wait...hes just killed a pool full of kids. He also seems to hero-worship a police detective (who is the best character in the film) but ends up killing him in a grotesque way, again for no discernible reason. But most seriously, this film is long. Way too long. It stand at 2 hours and 30 minutes...Id take 45 minutes out of it. lose some of the many shots of the hero wandering around doing nothing, or better still cut out the entire pointless love story with the irritating radio DJ. I guess the reason for being overly critical here is that it starts so well. I expected a lot more...