Here is a selections of reports from our friends who saw the film "killer.berlin.doc".
Unfortunately the reports below only cover screenings in Japan, but we will keep adding others as they come in - so please send in yours here!



We went to see "killer.berlin.doc" in a party of six.
Amazing - amazing! Akiko!
And Berlin looked like such a very, very fun place!
The fun part, mingled with the images and fragments of what the people in the film were saying, infiltrated my body and gave me a strange sensation.
The music, the image, the words and the narrative stimulated various parts of me in a complex way, and they totally blew me away.
Kyoko Komuro, Tokyo

I went to see "killer.berlin.doc" yesterday.
How exciting to see my dear Akiko & UsaKousa-chan's on the big screen!
I watched the Harakiri scene with a beating heart (you looked so valiant!)
I was thrilled to see you playing more active roles in various parts of the film that I had expected, my fist was clenched all the way.
I don't think I've watched a film so intently for a long time.
Racco, Nagano
(saw a screening in Tokyo)

I went to see the film with a friend and enjoyed it.
Do people still associate the Japanese with Harakiri, though?!
Kozue Tanaka, Tokyo

(About the Hello Kitty T-shirt that Akiko was wearing near the beginning of the film):
Really? I thought it matched the B- or C-movie feel of the film. Anyway, I wish there had been more of your friend in Kendo outfit and of Usako & Kousa to see in the film! Every time they came on the screen, they were gone so quickly and I didn't get to watch them in peace. I guess I'll have to watch the film again?
Misuzu Nishimura, Tokyo
(She's Usako & Kousa's grandma.)

By the way, I went to see "killer.berlin.doc" with the other Shinobu a couple of weeks ago.
It seems like a fun game to play, as long as you select the players well. On the other hand, in a country grown blunt with peace, no one would ever make associations with the Stasi (former Easter German secret police) - paparazzi is the most their imagination could stretch to, I think.
The woman with the bunnies stood out, didn't she?
??, Tokyo
(A friend of Shinobu Nomura = Boo, the mother of Usako & Kousa, who did the Japanese subtitles)

The 9th of May was Mother's Day, and my family agreed to my doing whatever I wanted to do (though I always do that anyway), so I went to Minami to see the film.
There were about 40 people in the audience at the Kirin Hall, mostly young people and some non-Japanese (I wonder if they were German??), I was the only older person.
It was different from watching the sort of films I'm used to watching, a bit like watching a documentary, even though it had a narrative. Your (Boo's) subtitles, too, were like subtitles on the Discovery Channel, which surprised me because I've only ever heard you talk in Komatsu dialect.
The scene where the man with black sunshades, set in a large empty space, talking about Berlin stayed in my mind most.
Kazumi Tokuda, Osaka
(another friend of Boo's)

Dear Akiko, I went to see you on the screen today. You're doing some nice work! I had been afraid that the film was going to be too progressive for me to understand, so I forced my husband to come with me. The venue was a nice, small space. The audience was mostly around 20 (many seemed to be below that) and we were the only older people. We were happy to be among the young and feel young ourselves again. Contrary to my expectations, the film was not at all difficult but interesting! The audience was watching it so intently, not moving at all. There must be something in it that grabs young people's heart.
I was so excited to see you on the screen, that I gave my husband a nudge every time and gave him a commentary: "that's Usako and Kousa", and so on.
Hiroko Furumoto, Ashiya
(She's an old schoolteacher of Akiko's, and saw a screening in Osaka.)

A great performance by Akiko & UsaKousa the comics! I was tempted to shout "here they are!" when you came on, but I was alone and didn't dare...(weep). Laughter was heard from different parts of the room during the Harakiri scene - and at the dancing UsaKousa at the very end.
About the story: "chasing a target around gives rise to a feeling of intimacy towards that unknown person, and in the end one becomes addicted to the act of pursuing itself". Well, isn't that exactly what following our stars around is about? The absolute difference is that in our case, we are not in turn chased by another person (...except by a certain promoter - sorry, that's not relevant here!)
Mami Noguchi, Osaka



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