Big in Japan
Where: Cineplex Odeon
When: Tonight, 9:45 p.m., Sunday, 2 p.m.
Rating: 3/5 stars
It’s to writer-director John Jeffcoat’s credit that his fictionalized account of attempts by dissatisfied Seattle indie rockers Tennis Pro to do the whole Cheap Trick thing by flying off to Tokyo seems both fresh and familiar.
Bandmates Phillip Peterson, David Drury and Sean Lowry are likable and Green River’s grunge drummer Alex Vincent is hilariously weird as the sketchy music producer who takes them under his wing.
It adds to the offbeat allure of a slack-paced, visually striking romp that can’t help but recall A Hard Days Night as these fishes-out-of-water try their luck in Tokyo. The self-promoting band’s antics, from encounters with various eccentrics, unknowingly checking into a “love hotel” and their bemusement over exotic local cuisine and locals offering “free hugs,” are as engaging as the group’s catchy pop-rock tunes. While the novelty wears thin as contrivances mount in the home stretch, there’s enough fun, charisma and witty sight gags along the way to keep you on board.
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