J-Film Blog

How in the hell can you make a decent, funny movie about ping pong?  Well, they’ve done it.  Ping Pong chronicles the exploits of two table tennis masters: The timid and reserved “Smile” Tsukimoto” (Arata) and the over-the-top “Peco” Hoshino (Yosuke Kubozuka) as they battle through life and their high school ping pong tournaments.

Really, though, this is a movie about Zen.  No, really, it is.  Trust me.  It doesn’t really become clear until late in the film, but it most definitely is.  That’s the real payoff here, as we find out the real reason why Peco and Smile are so good at the game, and what keeps them from winning and/or losing.  I guess, also, you could call this a commentary on Japanese culture in general.  Good or bad I leave it up to you, but the whole “Ganbaremashou!” thing is definitely right up front.

See, Peco is the stereotypical “I’m freaking awesome” type of player.  He knows it, and he makes sure everyone around him knows it as well.  He can’t stand to lose, and when he finally does to a rival Chinese player, he and his game collapses.  Eventually he re-invents himself and his game with the help of the old lady (Mari Natsuki) who runs the local “ping pong dojo.”

Smile, on the other hand, is probably just as good, but keeps that to himself.  He actually would rather lose a game than humiliate an opponent, but for him, the only thing that makes him truly happy is winning.  Yes, it rarely happens.  It’s a bit tricky to explain.

Throw in a big dash of ruthless competition from another high school, most notably “Dragon” (Shido Nakamura) who shares a moment of table-bound enlightenment with Peco at the end, and you’ve got a winner.

The movie is pretty damned funny, too.  Between Peco’s slapstick and Smile’s straightman, there’s plenty of laughs.  Some more subtle than others, to be sure, but funny nonetheless.

It was also nice to see the filming locations around the Enoshima and Kanagawa coast, which was one of my destinations on my trip to Japan last year.  It’s always fun to be able to say “Hey! I know where that is!” and “I was there!”

Ping Pong is a healthy dash of humor on top of a big ball of Zen enlightenment that you’ve got to see!

Amazon:Ping Pong
Netflix: Ping Pong
IMDB: Ping Pong

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