JFF16 - AKB48: The Show Must Go On

少女たちは傷つきながら、夢を見る Eiki Takahashi, 2012

I’ll be honest. This was the film I was looking forward to the most; the documentary of the unbelievably popular J-pop girl group AKB48. But let’s get one thing straight first; I am most definitely not a fan of this music. The idea of 48 young girls dancing around in skimpy schoolgirl outfits squeaking like Anime characters isn’t really something that appeals to me. But it’s undeniable, the group is a stroke of marketing genius, and has become a worldwide phenomenon. I was hoping this documentary would shed some light on the inner workings of the group, to see beyond the “let’s dance around in our underwear” music videos and to maybe better understand the appeal of this musical monstrosity.

(Please note, while the film does contain many talking heads and insights into individual members of the group, I will be referring to very few, if any at all, by name. Purely for the fact that there are just too many of them and I can’t keep up.)

The film opens with a recounting of the March 2011 Earthquake and Tsunami disaster. Concerts were cancelled as a result, and trips out to affected areas to perform for locals were scheduled. Various members of the group speak about their feelings at the time and how they wanted to do something to help, while footage of the girls on buses captures their shocked expressions at the destruction around them. At first I was worried that the whole film would be centred around these young idols meeting affected locals, weeping and marvelling at their unshakeable perseverance in the face of adversity, but these visits and small charity concerts are only one part of the documentary, and I was quite glad it avoided descending into what could have easily become a skewed perspective of a national tragedy. Although I did scoff at the some of the girls’ sentiments, there is no denying the faces of their fans, many of them little kids, singing along in the rain in front of the makeshift concert stages.

I found the inclusion of these charity drive scenes to be a bit problematic. Sure, such a popular group is obviously going to be a huge morale boost, but to me it just seemed a bit exploitative, like it was more for their own publicity… But anyway, let’s not get into politics. After the first charity scene, we started getting to the good stuff.

Ok. So from what I understand (which is very little), there are actually way more than 48 members. All the girls are split into different groups, and each group has its own team captain. When the time comes around to record a new single and music video, the 48 girls are decided on by the fans, who vote for their favourites. The girls attempt to increase their popularity with fans by appearing in magazines, landing roles in TV series, and appearing on talk shows, among other things. Ultimately, one girl will become the “centre girl”, achieving the ultimate popularity, while other rises and falls in rank throughout are commonplace. If this all sounds like some sick hierarchical meat market thinly veiled with musical pretence, that’s because it is. The “election” is held in a massive stadium, with a booming crowd carrying on like spectators in a Roman coliseum awaiting first blood. As the results are announced, the girls take to the stage to accept their trophies. This bizarre atmosphere quickly got even freakier when one girl, so overwhelmed at having been chosen, began hyperventilating on stage. I could only laugh in shock/disbelief. It was just all so serious that it became scary. I quickly realised that this was but the tip of the iceberg. Nearly every girl who was announced broke down and began crying their eyes out, while acceptance speeches with sentiments like “Even though I was selected I’m sure there are many people who hate me. But please don’t ever stop loving AKB” kicked the scene into another level of terrifying. Another brilliant election scene is included later in the film, again taking the form of a ridiculously overblown spectacle: A stadium game of “Rock, paper, scissors”. Sure, I mean, let’s face it, apart from maybe an Iron Chef cook off, this has got to be the fairest way to decide such important matters.

But we were just getting started. A large middle section of the documentary is devoted to the group’s sold out concerts at Saitama’s Seibu Dome. After the first concert is described as one that “Totally sucked” both by team captains and the group’s illustrious director/producer Yasushi Akimoto (a figure who is interestingly, largely absent from the film), the girls take it upon themselves to work harder and put on the best show they can for their fans.

However, they nearly kill themselves in the process.

One girl describes backstage as “war… pandemonium”. She’s not kidding. Hyperventilation is back with a vengeance, crew members console and apply ice packs, girls start dropping like flies, collapsing from exhaustion or heat, wander around backstage, delirious and speaking incoherently, clutching their oxygen cans for fear of ceasing to breathe altogether. Centre girl Atsuko Maeda is carried away on a stretcher, putting the show’s final number in jeopardy. With 20 seconds til stage time, she makes it out, but her exhaustion is obvious. It was like being unable to look away from a car crash. The hard work these girls put in is astonishing to the point of being ridiculous, and you must keep reminding yourself that the average age is only 17.

The film covers a lot of ground, probably too much even. Less engaging side stories I haven’t mentioned include the formation of a new, smaller team, and the subsequent suspension of its captain (she broke the “No dating rule” tsk tsk.) and the arrival of a new member from the earthquake stricken area. The film is driven by interviews with many individual girls, which is great, as it helps to make such a massive group seem a lot less faceless. Their thoughts on a wide range of issues including popularity and success range from hilariously naïve to surprisingly insightful. I really enjoyed seeing a certain couple of girls who admitted that they would never become the most popular, but were perfectly content to be extras in video clips, observing the higher ranked girls from afar, while hanging out together just having fun on the set.

There were many moments in this film where I thought, this can’t be real. It was both fascinating and terrifying at the same time, with many freaky “only in Japan” moments. Focusing on the girls as individuals was the best choice for director Takahashi, and I was glad there were no songs performed in their entirety (go buy a CD if you want that). In the end, the film is a fascinatingly compelling documentary, equal parts fairy-tale, musical, comedy and horror, with an almost non stop flow of tears. Everything I had hoped for and more.

Can’t wait for the hilariously titled 2013 follow up: “No Flower without Rain”

 

"Show Must Go On" Trailer. No subtitles, but you hardly need them.