“Kokuho” opens in Nagasaki in 1964 and unfolds over five tumultuous decades. It follows Kikuo, the son of a slain yakuza boss, who, at fifteen, is taken in by a celebrated kabuki master and raised alongside Shunsuke, the master’s son and designated heir. Their bond – part brotherhood, part rivalry – drives an epic saga of ambition, sacrifice, scandal, and devotion, culminating in the emergence of a singular kokuho: a living “national treasure.”

Ryo Yoshizawa’s fully embodied turn as Kikuo (no doubles and no shortcuts – he trained for over a year) anchors the film, while Ryusei Yokohama’s Shunsuke provides the counterweight in a relationship charged with passion and tension.

Director Lee Sang-il has previously adapted two novels by Shuichi Yoshida, “Villain” and “Rage”, and continues in the same vein with “Kokuho”, based on Yoshida’s 2018 novel of the same name. The film premiered at the Directors’ Fortnight programme at the Cannes Film Festival, and has been selected as Japan’s entry for the Best International Feature Film Oscar.