Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on June 2014

It’s not often in film that you come across a premise that hasn’t been tried before—or at least, not in the same vein. Michihito Fujii’s latest feature centers around handsome high-schooler Yukio (Masaki Okada), who’s also been blessed with brains and a heart. Yet he hides a secret that makes him different: He has four fathers. In a nod to Mama Mia!, Yukio doesn’t know which one is his biological dad—and neither do they, as they were all dating his mom when she conceived. But all four guys wanted to, stick around, so (and here the Mama Mia! similarity ends) they’ve lived together as a happy family ever since. Each might-be-dad has his own specialty: the university professor, the gym teacher, the gambler. Things get complicated when Yukio finds a wannabe girlfriend (Shiori Kutsuna) following him around, forcing him to explain his familial situation. Ever the multi-tasker, he also works to save a childhood chum (Kento Kaku) from local hoods, puzzles out why a different friend is constantly missing school and investigates a robbery involving underworld crime boss Tondabayashi (Akira Emoto). Could all these things be related to an impending local election? The pic remains fairly amusing as it morphs from friendly family drama to whodunnit, even if all the pieces don’t quite fit. (102 min.)