Pikanchi - Life is Hard Dakedo (But) Happy
Arashi made their first ever movie together entitled "Pikanchi - Life is Hard Dakedo Happy" on 2002. The original story was written by Yoshihiko Inohara, from group V6, Arashi's senpai (senior) from Johnny's Entertainment. The film was directed by Yukihiko Tsutsumi.
The story revolved around 5 friends, who lived in Yashio, a complex apartment, at the center of Tokyo City, Japan. Even with their different personalities and statuses in life, they ironically became close and got along well together.
Aiba Masaki, who played the character of Shun, was an ordinary guy who lived in middle-class section of Yashio. His father was a DJ for the community radio, which was just inside their house. His father just used the microphone to talk to the community, and the community had no other choice but to listen.
Ohno Satoshi, who played the character of Haru, was an awkward but hardworking guy, who also lived in the middle-class section of Yashio. He was the most unlucky guy in their group, because he always had the tendency to get fooled. He lived in the apartment floor where suicide always took place, and his mother always knew where he hid his porn magazines.
Ninomiya Kazunari, who played the character of Takuma, was a cool guy from the lower-class section of Yashio. His father was drowned in debts, and his mother left them because she could no longer endure their hard life and her husband's incapacity to make a good living for them.
Sakurai Sho, who played as Chu, was a leader of a yankee gang. His older brother, played by Yoshihiko Inohara, was among the leaders of the gang. With his brother's influence, Chu was able to lead the yankee gang. He lived in the section of Yashio, where gangs dwelt and crimes often committed. He was suspended from school after he ran his motorbike towards a perverted teacher, because the girl he liked was harassed by that perverted teacher.
Matsumoto Jun, who played as Bon, was the only rich member of the group. He was the only exception among the snobbish people in the elite-section of Yashio. He was friendly to everybody, which was probably the reason why he got along well with the other members. His family had their own business. His dream was to become a cook and live at the very corner of the very top floor of the apartment building.
The friendship of the five members started during their middle school days. Shun, Haru, Chu, and Bon instantly got along well. However, they thought Takuma was annoying because of his cool attitude. The four of them were kinda mischievous because their group activities included shoplifting. They were not found out until Takuma saw them. Takuma showed them the boxes of condoms he shoplifted himself. He showed them how he holed each condom, put them back in the boxes, and then brought them back to the convenience store. Months later, the community had a rise of birth rate. After that, they acknowledged Takuma's superiority and as the leader of their group.
They had always planned to go to Harajuku to hit on girls. The first and second times they went to Harujuku, they were unlucky. They got lost the first time they went and ended up in Sasazuka. They went back to Yashio without setting foot to Harajuku. Their second time was the first time they set foot on Harajuku. However, it was all wasted because Bon and Chu fought over where they should eat. Both of them ended up with bruise faces as well as Haru, who acted as their mediator, but to no luck. Shun just watched the other members fight and the trip become a waste. Only Takuma made something out from that trip, because he bought a skateboard and brought it back to Yashio. The third trip to Harajuku was their supposed-to-be revenge of their two failed attempts. However, their third attempt to flirt in Harajuku was also bound to be a failure.
Chu went there to show off his skills. He had a pile of hollow blocks and divided them with the use of his hands and head. He thought he was so cool, but actually the passers by thought he was a crazy man. He ended up with bruise wrists and forehead, and failed to even get a girl to hit on.
Haru could not get himself to approach any girl, so he just sat there helplessly while looking at every girl that passed by. A sexy woman noticed him and approached him. That woman purposely used her body to attract him and persuade him to buy her painting. Another pretty woman also approached him to sell magazines. He ended up buying from them, but failed to even flirt with them.
Bon built a small shop form his large bag. Instead of looking for girls to hit on, he sold desserts on that particular place. Then, two men came, destroyed his small shop, and got all his money from his sales, just because he could not put up a shop anywhere he wanted.
Takuma tried to attract girls with his skateboarding skills. There were girls, who got fascinated by his skills, but their attention was immediately stolen by a better skateboarder. He ended up challenging the guy, but failed to get a girl.
Shun tried his best to approach the girls that passed by, but had no luck. Then a girl approached him so she could lend his cellphone and call her friend. That friend of hers was a cute girl named Miku, and Shun instantly fell in love with her. Miku glanced the second time at Shun, but only to look at his monkey phone strap. All the members, by the way, had the same monkey phone strap and ring tone named Michi (Road/Way).
The five of them gathered together to again realize that they failed on their third attempt to flirt on Harajuku, but then they realized how funny things were, and appreciated Harujuku because of what happened to them that day.
Shun called Miku's number, but the conversation just revolved around the phone strap and how she liked it very much. He asked her if they could meet again so that he could give him the monkey phone strap. He asked his father to give him a monkey phone strap, which was only intended as a freebie for the radio listeners. Then his father gave him a rare kind of of that strap.
The next few days, Shun and Miku met again and he gave her the phone strap. Just before they parted ways, he asked her if he could date her. She agreed, and that was the start of his secret from the group. He started to have a girlfriend without the other members knowing about it. However, Shun found a direction to his life. After he learned that Miku would prefer him to go to college, he immediately looked up for a university where he could enroll for college. He suddenly became interested in his studies and studied harder so that he could catch up from his low grades and take the entrance exam to Aogaku University.
Haru, on the other hand, got attracted to their new neighbor named Yuka. He asked his boss if he could do the delivery to the floor level where Yuka lived. However, Yuka was always not there when he would deliver something to Yuka's house. Yuka's mother knew that he liked her daughter, so she used it to lure Haru into her house and seduce him. He continued to come to Yuka's house, in the hope that he could finally meet her, but her mother would always find a way for Yuka to stay out of the house, and so that she could have sex with Haru. Her husband worked in Luxembourg and was far from her for a long time, which explained her actions towards Haru. Among the five members, he was the first one to have sex with a woman. He also kept this secret to the other members.
Bon called the other members because he had a sad news to tell them. He told them that he would study abroad. He accidentally heard his parents talk about him going to another family's house to study and learn about their business. He misunderstood what his parents were talking about, because the truth was that he would just live with the Vietnamese family on their neighborhood, who were employed in his father's store. But before he learned that he just misunderstood his parents, he already told the other members that he was leaving. After he made a promise to the other members that he would be an international man, and would improve Yashio when he would come back, he would be finding himself just around the neighborhood.
The members learned about Shun's secret when Shun accidentally told his dad his secret on live radio broadcast. When the other members learned that Shun already had a girlfriend and planned to get to the university, they made him swear that he would keep their group promise. At first, the issue with Chu and Bon was that they felt betrayed for keeping his secret from them. But what really mattered to Takuma was if he could keep the group promise they made, that they would never be like the guys in the ferry boat, who wore their neck ties around their heads, paid girls to entertain them, and got drunk.
Shun told them that they would sink the ferry boat, if that would be the only way to keep the promise they made. They would meet on the night before his entrance exam to Aogaku University. The night came, and he prepared himself to attack the ferry boat. He wore a mask and jumped from the bridge to the ferry. Haru also made his move. He wore a stocking on his face, and helped Shun throw the guys from the boat. Takuma and Bon followed suit, while Chu drove a large machine to sink the ferry boat. Shun also discovered that his girlfriend was working on that ferry boat as a paid entertainer of the men they abhor. He ended his relationship with her right there and then.
After the successful plan to sink the boat, they went to Takuma's house to celebrate. On the way to Takuma's house, Haru also told them his secret, which made the other members happier. They never thought that an awkward and unlucky as Haru could easily get to first base with a woman. However, when they got to Takuma's house, they found Takuma's father hanging from the ceiling. His father's suicide shocked all five of them. Even if Takuma asked them to go back to their homes, they didn't want to leave him. Even with this sad day, they wanted to share to each other their pain and sadness. Even if the next day was Shun's entrance exam, he still wouldn't leave. All five of them stayed there.
The day came for Shun's entrance exam, but he woke up late. He told them there was no longer a reason for him to continue taking up the exam, but Haru, Chu, Bon, and Takuma told him he had to take the exam, because he was their only hope. Chu droved for him so he could get to the university on time, even if it meant violating the traffic rules. They luckily got to the university on time.
Times passed by and seasons changed. All the four members attended their graduation. Chu was also there, even if he was dismissed from school, to congratulate the other members. However, the four members gave him a diploma, which was just stolen, of course. Chu had to do a community service as punishment for violating the law. Shun wasn't able to pass the exam. Haru decided to work at the supermarket, where they had shoplifted goods. Bon decided to follow his dream to become a cook, instead of what his father wanted him to do, which was to manage their business. Takuma had to leave the town and go to America to pursue his dream as a skateboarder. Just before Takuma left, Haru gave him English books and stuffs that could help him in America. Takuma left them a message that was written at the ceiling under the bridge, where he constantly practiced skateboarding. The message was written as "Life is Hard but Happy".
Credits to sableheart for the raw videos, and mabo for the soft subs. Download and watch Pikanchi: Life is Hard Dakedo Happy.
Credits to kazenomukoe for the PV's. Download and watch the OST: Pikanchi and Michi.
The story revolved around 5 friends, who lived in Yashio, a complex apartment, at the center of Tokyo City, Japan. Even with their different personalities and statuses in life, they ironically became close and got along well together.
Aiba Masaki, who played the character of Shun, was an ordinary guy who lived in middle-class section of Yashio. His father was a DJ for the community radio, which was just inside their house. His father just used the microphone to talk to the community, and the community had no other choice but to listen.
Ohno Satoshi, who played the character of Haru, was an awkward but hardworking guy, who also lived in the middle-class section of Yashio. He was the most unlucky guy in their group, because he always had the tendency to get fooled. He lived in the apartment floor where suicide always took place, and his mother always knew where he hid his porn magazines.
Ninomiya Kazunari, who played the character of Takuma, was a cool guy from the lower-class section of Yashio. His father was drowned in debts, and his mother left them because she could no longer endure their hard life and her husband's incapacity to make a good living for them.
Sakurai Sho, who played as Chu, was a leader of a yankee gang. His older brother, played by Yoshihiko Inohara, was among the leaders of the gang. With his brother's influence, Chu was able to lead the yankee gang. He lived in the section of Yashio, where gangs dwelt and crimes often committed. He was suspended from school after he ran his motorbike towards a perverted teacher, because the girl he liked was harassed by that perverted teacher.
Matsumoto Jun, who played as Bon, was the only rich member of the group. He was the only exception among the snobbish people in the elite-section of Yashio. He was friendly to everybody, which was probably the reason why he got along well with the other members. His family had their own business. His dream was to become a cook and live at the very corner of the very top floor of the apartment building.
The friendship of the five members started during their middle school days. Shun, Haru, Chu, and Bon instantly got along well. However, they thought Takuma was annoying because of his cool attitude. The four of them were kinda mischievous because their group activities included shoplifting. They were not found out until Takuma saw them. Takuma showed them the boxes of condoms he shoplifted himself. He showed them how he holed each condom, put them back in the boxes, and then brought them back to the convenience store. Months later, the community had a rise of birth rate. After that, they acknowledged Takuma's superiority and as the leader of their group.
They had always planned to go to Harajuku to hit on girls. The first and second times they went to Harujuku, they were unlucky. They got lost the first time they went and ended up in Sasazuka. They went back to Yashio without setting foot to Harajuku. Their second time was the first time they set foot on Harajuku. However, it was all wasted because Bon and Chu fought over where they should eat. Both of them ended up with bruise faces as well as Haru, who acted as their mediator, but to no luck. Shun just watched the other members fight and the trip become a waste. Only Takuma made something out from that trip, because he bought a skateboard and brought it back to Yashio. The third trip to Harajuku was their supposed-to-be revenge of their two failed attempts. However, their third attempt to flirt in Harajuku was also bound to be a failure.
Chu went there to show off his skills. He had a pile of hollow blocks and divided them with the use of his hands and head. He thought he was so cool, but actually the passers by thought he was a crazy man. He ended up with bruise wrists and forehead, and failed to even get a girl to hit on.
Haru could not get himself to approach any girl, so he just sat there helplessly while looking at every girl that passed by. A sexy woman noticed him and approached him. That woman purposely used her body to attract him and persuade him to buy her painting. Another pretty woman also approached him to sell magazines. He ended up buying from them, but failed to even flirt with them.
Bon built a small shop form his large bag. Instead of looking for girls to hit on, he sold desserts on that particular place. Then, two men came, destroyed his small shop, and got all his money from his sales, just because he could not put up a shop anywhere he wanted.
Takuma tried to attract girls with his skateboarding skills. There were girls, who got fascinated by his skills, but their attention was immediately stolen by a better skateboarder. He ended up challenging the guy, but failed to get a girl.
Shun tried his best to approach the girls that passed by, but had no luck. Then a girl approached him so she could lend his cellphone and call her friend. That friend of hers was a cute girl named Miku, and Shun instantly fell in love with her. Miku glanced the second time at Shun, but only to look at his monkey phone strap. All the members, by the way, had the same monkey phone strap and ring tone named Michi (Road/Way).
The five of them gathered together to again realize that they failed on their third attempt to flirt on Harajuku, but then they realized how funny things were, and appreciated Harujuku because of what happened to them that day.
Shun called Miku's number, but the conversation just revolved around the phone strap and how she liked it very much. He asked her if they could meet again so that he could give him the monkey phone strap. He asked his father to give him a monkey phone strap, which was only intended as a freebie for the radio listeners. Then his father gave him a rare kind of of that strap.
The next few days, Shun and Miku met again and he gave her the phone strap. Just before they parted ways, he asked her if he could date her. She agreed, and that was the start of his secret from the group. He started to have a girlfriend without the other members knowing about it. However, Shun found a direction to his life. After he learned that Miku would prefer him to go to college, he immediately looked up for a university where he could enroll for college. He suddenly became interested in his studies and studied harder so that he could catch up from his low grades and take the entrance exam to Aogaku University.
Haru, on the other hand, got attracted to their new neighbor named Yuka. He asked his boss if he could do the delivery to the floor level where Yuka lived. However, Yuka was always not there when he would deliver something to Yuka's house. Yuka's mother knew that he liked her daughter, so she used it to lure Haru into her house and seduce him. He continued to come to Yuka's house, in the hope that he could finally meet her, but her mother would always find a way for Yuka to stay out of the house, and so that she could have sex with Haru. Her husband worked in Luxembourg and was far from her for a long time, which explained her actions towards Haru. Among the five members, he was the first one to have sex with a woman. He also kept this secret to the other members.
Bon called the other members because he had a sad news to tell them. He told them that he would study abroad. He accidentally heard his parents talk about him going to another family's house to study and learn about their business. He misunderstood what his parents were talking about, because the truth was that he would just live with the Vietnamese family on their neighborhood, who were employed in his father's store. But before he learned that he just misunderstood his parents, he already told the other members that he was leaving. After he made a promise to the other members that he would be an international man, and would improve Yashio when he would come back, he would be finding himself just around the neighborhood.
The members learned about Shun's secret when Shun accidentally told his dad his secret on live radio broadcast. When the other members learned that Shun already had a girlfriend and planned to get to the university, they made him swear that he would keep their group promise. At first, the issue with Chu and Bon was that they felt betrayed for keeping his secret from them. But what really mattered to Takuma was if he could keep the group promise they made, that they would never be like the guys in the ferry boat, who wore their neck ties around their heads, paid girls to entertain them, and got drunk.
Shun told them that they would sink the ferry boat, if that would be the only way to keep the promise they made. They would meet on the night before his entrance exam to Aogaku University. The night came, and he prepared himself to attack the ferry boat. He wore a mask and jumped from the bridge to the ferry. Haru also made his move. He wore a stocking on his face, and helped Shun throw the guys from the boat. Takuma and Bon followed suit, while Chu drove a large machine to sink the ferry boat. Shun also discovered that his girlfriend was working on that ferry boat as a paid entertainer of the men they abhor. He ended his relationship with her right there and then.
After the successful plan to sink the boat, they went to Takuma's house to celebrate. On the way to Takuma's house, Haru also told them his secret, which made the other members happier. They never thought that an awkward and unlucky as Haru could easily get to first base with a woman. However, when they got to Takuma's house, they found Takuma's father hanging from the ceiling. His father's suicide shocked all five of them. Even if Takuma asked them to go back to their homes, they didn't want to leave him. Even with this sad day, they wanted to share to each other their pain and sadness. Even if the next day was Shun's entrance exam, he still wouldn't leave. All five of them stayed there.
The day came for Shun's entrance exam, but he woke up late. He told them there was no longer a reason for him to continue taking up the exam, but Haru, Chu, Bon, and Takuma told him he had to take the exam, because he was their only hope. Chu droved for him so he could get to the university on time, even if it meant violating the traffic rules. They luckily got to the university on time.
Times passed by and seasons changed. All the four members attended their graduation. Chu was also there, even if he was dismissed from school, to congratulate the other members. However, the four members gave him a diploma, which was just stolen, of course. Chu had to do a community service as punishment for violating the law. Shun wasn't able to pass the exam. Haru decided to work at the supermarket, where they had shoplifted goods. Bon decided to follow his dream to become a cook, instead of what his father wanted him to do, which was to manage their business. Takuma had to leave the town and go to America to pursue his dream as a skateboarder. Just before Takuma left, Haru gave him English books and stuffs that could help him in America. Takuma left them a message that was written at the ceiling under the bridge, where he constantly practiced skateboarding. The message was written as "Life is Hard but Happy".
Credits to sableheart for the raw videos, and mabo for the soft subs. Download and watch Pikanchi: Life is Hard Dakedo Happy.
Credits to kazenomukoe for the PV's. Download and watch the OST: Pikanchi and Michi.