Riding Uphill

Riding Uphill (Japanese title Gachi Boshi ガチ★星) is a 2018 "local drama" Japanese film created by Nishi-Nihon Television. Directed by Kan Eguchi and starring Kenichi Abe, it shows the life of a downtrodden man who turns to competitive cycling to succeed.

Overview

This is the second film in Nishi Nihon Television's "local drama" genre (which is designed to bring a spotlight to more local areas of the country and different walks of life in each said area). The first was the 2013 television drama Mentai Piriri (めんたいぴりり), also directed by Kan Eguchi. Mentai Pririri showed the life of a struggling actor living in the Fukuoka Prefecture area. Riding Uphill, too, focuses on the Fukuoka Prefecture lifestyle, and much of the promotional materials and events take place there.

After the success of the 2016 television drama, the footage was re-edited into a 90-minute feature film, which is set to be released in May 2018 by the distribution company Magnetize.

Summary

The story takes place a Kokura Cycling Stadium in Kita-Kyushu.

Cast

• Koji Hamashima - Kenichi Abe
• Hisamatsu Takaaki - Fukuyama Shota
• Hamashima Yao - Hayashi Mari
• Uesugi Akira - Funasaki Ryo
• Iwashita Yoichiro - Morisaki Kengo
• Irie Kensuke - Ito Koichi
• Fukuda Kenji - Yoshizawa Shogo
• Yayama Shusaku - Nishihara Seigo
• Ramen patron - Hakata Hanamaru
• Konoshita Kazuhide - Moro Morooka
• Matsunaga Mami - Furusaki Hitomi
• Hamashima Kenta - Kimura Sei

Staff

• Script - Kanazawa Tomoki
• Concept - Kuuki Ltd., Pylon Ltd.
• Producers - Morikawa Koji, Setojima Masaaki
• Director - Eguchi Kan
• Camera - Konomi Takahiro
• Special thanks - JKA, RIZAP, Medalist Planning
• Support - Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture, Kurume City, Japan Cycling Federation
• Distribution - Magnetize

External links

• Official Website (Japanese)
• Magnetize distribution website

Content in this edit is translated from the existing Japanese Wikipedia article at jp:ガチ★星; see its history for attribution.