“Heaven’s Story,” a movie by Japanese director Zeze Takahisa won a prestigious critics award at the 2011 Berlin International Film Festival on Friday. The movie appeared in the festival’s Forum category for avant-garde and experimental films. The award was given by the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI), a group that is not actually part of the film festival’s organization. Japanese films have now taken the award for the last three years running. Yukisada Isao’s “Parade” won last year and “Love Exposure” by director Sono Shion was the winner in 2009. Zeze, who is currently filming in Japan, released a statement expressing his gratitude that his work was appreciated by an international audience.
An epic film in nine parts, with a challenging running time of four hours and 38 minutes, “Heaven’s Story” has multiple characters and is based around the story of a woman out to revenge the murder of her parents and sister. The strong cast includes Watanabe Makiko, Sugata Shun, Emoto Akira, Murakami Jun, Sato Koichi and the young Tsuruoka Moeki. Zeze, a native of Oita Prefecture, began making films while studying at Kyoto University. He has a distinguished career as a “pink” (softcore porn) film-maker.