At This Late Date, the Charleston Page #2

---

Prime Minister!

That doesn't work!

Our country is...

without war and anti-war.

And we hoist the flags

of real peace!

To hoist those flags,

an Army Minister is necessary,

Foreign Minister.

When I hear the words

of "Army Minister",

Whenever I remember

some professors saying,

"A country without military

power is not a country!"

I feel a chill.

Goose pimples! Look!

Where?

What I want...

isn't military power,

but deterrence power.

Because our country...

will be surrounded by Japan and others.

When that time comes,

we have no allies.

What to do?

So deterrence power...

means defending

against foreign invasion?

Oh.

Deterrence power.

What country is it?

Yamatai.

Where is it?

Is it... here?

Also here.

We were drifters.

Drifting here and there.

To where there is work.

We've been to many places.

Underpasses of

Sanya, Ueno, Shinjuku.

So you're vagabonds.

Hey!

Now we have our territory.

And our border.

Why are you here?

Today,

we paid a state visit...

to the Diet of Japan.

Before we left,

we ate at the senators' canteen.

It was a state visit,

so we thought...

Japan would pay for our meals.

But they didn't.

What misers!

Finance Minister

was at the bicycle races.

So we got into trouble.

What?

You jumped your bills.

Good.

No... violence.

You tried to rape someone!

Finance Minister!

Finance?

Sorry!

I won three races,

so I stayed until the last race.

To continue my luck

I went to play pachinko.

I won all these!

Did you pay our bills?

It's 10,625 yen.

I did. So,

you can leave now.

It's very late, may I...

stay the night here?

Please open up and let me in.

Let me have breakfast too.

It's free, right?

Excuse me.

Oh.

Hey kid, what did you do?

Doctor Game?

I'm so sorry for my brother.

Their treatments,

may I pay for that?

How much?

I've prepared... this.

- 10 million!

- Stupid!

1 million.

I see.

May we two talk about it?

Yes.

Come.

Are you blind?

- What?

- Tamiko!

What?

Toilet!

I didn't expect that!

I thought it's just 100,000!

Me too, Yumi!

- We can go to Hawaii!

- Am I dreaming?

It's vacant!

What?

What, punk?

So the Yamatai statesmen

are leaving us?

Do you think this is funny?

This is not funny!

Any toothpicks?

You're really crazy.

Go see a doctor.

You have your insurance cards?

We don't.

- We tore them up.

- Tore them up?

"Yen" is our currency,

so we didn't tear them up.

All things issued by Japan,

we tore them up yesterday.

Tax reminders, bus passes,

pension cards,

- policewomen's...

- Policewomen?

Recruitment posters.

Stop kidding!

If they sent us draft notices,

those too.

Will they draft you old men?

You'll never know,

Japan these days...

Jiro.

What is this music?

The Charleston.

What is it?

Lately,

I don't know why,

this is funny to me.

AT THIS LATE DATE THE CHARLESTON

Executive Producers

Shiro Sasaki, Kihachi Okamoto

Produced by

Yosuke Taga

Written by

Kihachi Okamoto, Go Riju

Photographed by

Yudai Kato

Edited by

Yoshihiro Araki

Music by

Masaru Sato

Directed by

Kihachi Okamoto

What's wrong, the wipers?

My tears, I can't...

see the road.

Never mind that.

Very funny.

Jiro!

This is my first time.

Know the taste of your tears?

Spicy? Sweet?

Mild spicy.

Sweet.

What's up?

You've been circling

around the police station!

Angry with us?

Very nice morning.

What's happening in world politics?

No littering.

Put them properly in the litter bin.

Yamatai people! Yamatai people!

Hey you!

Stop the car.

Yes.

- Thief!

- Thief!

Newspaper thief! Milk thief!

Now we got you!

Somebody help!

You!

Jiro!

Bastards!

- Those old delinquents!

- Right!

You're a juvenile delinquent.

You did quite a lot.

Truancy, scribbling the walls

of headmaster's office.

Destroying lab specimens,

beating up teachers.

Extortion, shoplifting, rape.

Attempted!

Attempted.

Stealing milk and newspaper

is a misunderstanding!

Misunderstanding.

Go.

Not until you tell me about

the Yamatai people.

Those crazy old men?

They live there!

- Above a bomb.

- What?

Exactly above it.

"Near the war's end, there was

an anti-aircraft artillery there."

"During the bombardment

on March 10, 1945,"

"it was hit by several

250-ton bombs."

"The artillery was destroyed,"

"but there were at least

2 unexploded bombs."

"The captain at that time,"

"made a telephone report

on Apr 1, 1958."

Sounds convincing.

"The owner of the land

and house of that spot,"

"Munechika Okonogi made

a similar report that day."

- Munechika?

- Dad.

He has such a house?

Dad?

- Yours?

- Yes.

He's reported as missing.

Don't mind that.

This is some kind of sickness.

- Sickness?

- He's been missing since...

December 8.

It's his 3rd time.

No, 4th.

He'll come home.

- Is that true?

- No.

5th.

He probably won't

come home this time.

He's been missing since December 8,

they've been living there

since December 8,

they may have done

something crazy,

they may have chopped

him up and buried him!

Stupid! Stupid!

Shut up!

The deceased...no..

his family is here!

- He's not his real son!

- Stupid!

Watch your mouth, idiot!

Never mind.

I'm adopted, Mr. Idiot.

Mr. Idiot?

But they're still

father and son, Mr. Idiot?

- Watch your mouth!

- The unexploded bombs.

Will they explode after 36 years?

That ever happened?

Yes.

I was in the naval air force.

If the fuse is working,

it can explode.

How? By impact?

Say, a huge earthquake.

Yes.

It's calm today.

Even after yesterday morning.

An earthquake of that magnitude.

What a relief.

The earthquake yesterday...

was 3 on seismic scale.

The paper says.

While we're relieved...

that our country is safe,

remember...

today is August 6.

The day of the Hiroshima A-bomb.

The family of Mail Minister...

all died on that day.

This is a sad day.

Everybody.

A minute...

of silence.

Jiro, let's go home.

Can't leave a patient alone.

Sir.

You look painful, what's wrong?

If you have stomach ache, take a pill.

Or go to the toilet.

Toilet.

Shut up!

Toilet, no...

for going to the latrine,

these 36 years...

I live in pain!

- Hemorrhoids?

- Shut up!

At noon, around this day

36 years ago,

when I was squatting in the latrine,

a B29 bomber out of power,

dropped a 250-ton bomb,

the only one it had,

on our air field.

I rushed there,

my 13 men were all

blown into pieces.

I picked up...

pieces of this size,

and put them in a bucket.

This is the 8th time!

Listen.

Yes?

They were all kids of your age.

Your age?

Then you can't smoke!

At what age did you start smoking?

You too.

Mr. Osaku.

Please see the chief.

Jiro!

Damn!

Bourgeois punk!

I'm a proletarian.

Someday I'll catch you

with this hand.

What's so bourgeois about me?

Where? Loan companies,

supermarkets, restaurants, grills,

pachinkos, car rentals.

What?

Your family!

- You don't know?

- I don't.

Do you?

That girl last night,

she was paid...

1 million to drop the charges.

Do you know?

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes