Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on November 2011

This is one of those films where there is a huge gap between what it thinks it is and what it actually is. Directed by Yuya Ishii and debuting at the Tokyo International Film Fest in October, Hara Ga Kore Nande labors under the misapprehension it is a comedy. That’s a gigantic mistake since it’s not funny at all—but does have plenty of overblown melodrama. 24-year-old Mitsuko (Riisa Naka) is into her third trimester of pregnancy and totally destitute. Her last lifeline is to return to the slum/down-and-out neighborhood where she was raised and take refuge with her old landlady, who is bedridden. Are you laughing yet? The film then sketches a heroine-against-the-world scenario, with various subplots, as Mitsuko concentrates on doing what’s “cool” (don’t ask). The motifs get more and more exaggerated as the woman gets closer to the due date. It’s not much of a spoiler to say she’s going to end up delivering in a field somewhere as people run around screaming. Truly awful. (English title: Mitsuko Delivers; 109 min)