OZ PRODUCTION
DARK WATER
HITOMI KUROKI
RIO KANNO MIREI OGUCHI
ASAMI MIZUKAWA
PRODUCER TAKASHIGE ICHISE
ORIGINAL STORY BY KOJI SUZUKI
SCREENPLAY YOSHIHIRO NAKAMURA KENICHI SUZUKI
DIRECTED BY HIDEO NAKATA
And tomorrow, we can practice singing, okay?
Okay, see you tomorrow! Okay!
Okay, see you tomorrow!
Yoshimi, who's coming to get you?
Miss Yoshimi Matsubara.
Well, your husband has no objections on the division of property.
So it is our daughter?
Yes.
He's absolutely insistent that he won't give up custody.
I wonder why he's saying this now?
Up to this point, he's never taken care of her, not even once.
Perhaps it's just that you've never noticed.
He may have, in his own way...
No, that's not it at all!
Every year, he forgets her birthday!
Where are you living?
I'm looking for a place for my daughter and myself right now.
But I'll be deciding this week.
Just a small question.
Certainly.
Is it true that you once received psychiatric treatment?
Did he tell you that?
Yes.
That was before we were married.
Over ten years ago, now.
I was working proofreading novels at the time, and...
You mean correcting spelling mistakes, that sort of thing?
Yes.
And some of the novels I was working on then
were extremely graphic and sadistic.
So it was a distraction to your work?
No, you see, the content was just so horrible!
And I had to read them over and over again.
So that's when you started going for treatment?
Yes.
I see.
Is that going to...
Oh, no, that shouldn't present a problem.
You know, I...
I haven't had any problems at all since then.
It's all right.
And unless something major occurs,
the mother usually has the advantage
when the child is six years old or younger.
Right.
My being treated before,
that doesn't matter anymore.
Hey, a fact is a fact.
What's wrong with telling the truth?
I don't think it will get you very far now.
Go straight along the river.
- Right here? - Yes.
Thank you very much.
Are you tired?
This next one is going to be the last, okay?
All right, I'm going on ahead.
Iku-chan!
What do you think this room is for?
Is that where you eat?
How about this one?
Where you sleep?
How about this little one over here?
That's my room!
Okay, I'm off to go see Iku-chan's room! Bye!
Hey!
How many floors are there?
Gee, I don't know...
Can you count them?
One, two, three, four, five...
So, what do you think?
A real bargain, I'd say.
We'll think about it.
Please do!
Ms. Matsubara?
Yes.
I've been waiting for you.
Please, come in.
The apartment manager lives here too.
So you can feel safe, even coming home at night.
Disappointed?
It IS a bit old.
But it's solidly built, you know.
Please.
Mr. Kamiya!
I told you to wipe this up.
I'm sorry, it looks like a bucket of water spilled earlier.
After you.
Which way?
Here we are.
After you.
How old is your daughter?
Iku-chan, how old are you?
Almost six!
Oh, then you're going to be a kindergartener.
Yup!
Mama, where's my room?
How about this one over here?
All right!
From here, you can walk to kindergarten.
Next week, interior decorators are going to come in,
and replace all of the wallpaper.
It will look so new you won't recognize it.
The humidity in here is unreal.
Well, with the rain that we've been having...
Most people use this room as a bedroom.
Oh, that's right,
I haven't shown you the kitchen yet, have I?
Please.
The kitchen will be made up nice soon too.
You'll find it easy to use.
It looked like that last family liked this place too.
"The early bird catches the worm."
Oh, really?
It's just the two of you, right?
Yes.
Oh, then there's plenty of room!
A real steal.
Iku-chan?
Maybe she went outside?
I'm going to go check.
Iku-chan?
Excuse me, has my little girl been here?
We haven't seen her.
I see...
Baron, have you seen a girl?
He says he hasn't either.
Iku-chan!
That's my daughter!
Which floor was that?
Can't tell. They all look the same.
Iku-chan!
Mama!
What were you doing?
I was looking all over for you.
Where did you get this?
It was lying on the ground.
Where?
Over there.
There aren't any children living here now.
Well, maybe some children came over to play.
It's your lucky day.
No!
It's not right.
We don't know who these belong to.
You don't have to work so hard.
No problem!
LOST AND FOUND
Mine!
Hey!
Come back here!
You silly!
The sound really echoes, huh?
Gotta be careful, right?
What the...
Count to ten on each tooth!
I am counting!
- Cheese! - Cheese!
Everyone, I'd like to introduce our new friend, Ikuko Matsubara.
Nice to meet you, I'm Ikuko Matsubara.
You don't seem very excited.
I'm Ikuko Matsubara!
All right! Pleased to meet you!
Welcome! Which floor, Ma'am?
The first floor, please.
Certainly.
Huh?
Excuse me.
There's water leaking from our ceiling.
I'm Yoshimi Matsubara, we just moved into apartment 305.
There's a wet spot on my ceiling, and water is dripping down from it.
Well, the building is very old, you see.
So it gets a little rickety.
Okay...
And so...
I'll make a note of it in the log.
All right, everyone!
Quiet down and listen up.
I want to introduce our newest friend on her first day!
Now, can you be energetic as you tell us your name?
Nice to meet you, I'm Ikuko Matsubara!
Now let's all be friendly to her, okay?
Okay!
Please.
Thank you. Please.
We believe in giving children the freedom to do what they desire.
This is our basic educational philosophy.
All of our children are really outgoing.
Ikuko will make friends in no time.
- Please take care of her. - Not a problem.
Here you are.
Oh, thank you.
- Please, go ahead. - Thank you for the drink.
Principal, Kobayashi is here.
I hear that you called Ms. Tsushima stupid.
That's no good,
you're going to be an elementary school student soon.
You said it to Kusano and Uesugi, right?
That I'm stupid.
Why is Ms. Tsushima stupid?
What was it that you said?
"Ms. Tsushima is stupid because she's fat."
That's what you said, right?
What's that all about?
Is everyone who is overweight stupid?
Well?
What are you crying for?
Hey, Kobayashi!
Yes, why are you crying?
Is it our fault?
Well, that's not it, it's nobody's fault but your own.
Hello?
The place might be old, but I really doubt that that's the cause.
I think that it might be a plumbing leak or something
from somewhere above us.
Maybe from the room right above you.
That's what I thought, so I went up and checked,
but no one answered.
Thank you for the food.
I understand, I'll tell the apartment manager myself tomorrow.
No, you see, he won't lift a finger, that's why I called you.
But I'm not involved with management, you see.
But water is dripping from my ceiling.
Okay, see you tomorrow!
Sorry to keep you waiting, I was a little tied up.
Where were we?
Oh, yes, Ms. Yoshimi Matsubara.
You have previous experience, correct?
I worked up until six years ago.
I see, I see...
At Sanyu Publishing, quite a large company.
As you can see, we're a small publisher.
Why did you leave Sanyu?
I got married and had a child.
Oh, I see, I see.
Are you sure you'd be okay with a little place like this?
The pay wouldn't be like what you got before, you know.
Well, I'm in a situation right now
where I really want to start working soon.
Of course, I don't mean taking a job just anywhere...
That's all right, I understand.
I'm sorry.
Mr. Kono!
Yes?
Excuse me again, please.
I'm sorry for having to leave so many times.
Yes?
Okay, goodbye!
Hello?
What's going on?
Yoshimi's been waiting here by herself all this...
What? You can't just...
So who's coming to pick her up today?
I see.
Yoshimi-chan!
Today, they said that your father's coming to get you.
So just wait a little longer, okay?
What about my mama?
Your mama? Well, your mama...
Sir, even if you say that,
there is just no way for us to deal with it...
Ms. Matsubara?
Oh, yes, I worked at Sanyu until six years ago, when I had my child.
My job was proofreading and revisions, and...
I look forward to working with you.
Right.
Hey, wait a second, Ms. Matsubara?
Iku-chan!
Iku-chan...
CHILD MISSING
MITSUKO KAWAI
BORN NOVEMBER 3, 1993 (5 YEARS OLD) HEIGHT 116 CM, WEIGHT 20 KG LONG, BLACK HAIR, WEARING A YELLOW RAINCOAT (WITH HOOD) LAST SEEN ON JULY 14, 1999...
Iku-chan!
Mama!
Don't just do whatever you want!
What do you mean, "whatever I want?"
What are you doing? You didn't even go to pick her up!
This has nothing to do with you!
Waiting there all alone...
Do you know how that feels?!
We're going home.
Let's go.
This is pretty.
Yes, it's pretty, it's pretty.
What does it look like to you?
A flower?
Do you want to try that?
Let's get some on the way home.
Where should we set the fireworks off?
We'd get in trouble on the balcony, right?
Mama?
I'm okay with being with just you, Mama.
Did Papa say something to you?
I'm sorry.
As long as you're with me, Iku-chan,
I'll be okay, no matter what happens.
You have one new message.
This is Kono, head of personnel at Mitsuba Publishing.
I'm really sorry for all of the commotion at your interview today.
In any case, I was thinking, that if you would like,
we would like for you to take over the proofreading and revisions...
No way!
What?
I got the job!
You got the job? You did it!
All right! I did it!
You did it!
Would you like to go to the top floor, Ma'am?
Yes, please.
Fourth floor, toys.
Going up!
Okay!
Let's go!
Okay.
No!
No, don't!
Ow! That hurts, ow!
There, I win!
But that's not yours, Mit-chan.
That's no fair.
What?
I like this one, so I'll give you this one, Mit-chan.
That's okay, right?
Iku-chan, turn off the water and come on out.
But she loves the bath. She's going to stay in it forever.
Come on now, time to come out.
Okay, let's play hide and seek!
Yay!
First you start with rock,
rock, paper, scissors!
Okay, Mao-chan's it!
One... two... three... four...
Hey, can I hide here too?
This is our spot. Hide over there.
I'm ready!
What happened?
Well...
She suddenly threw up and collapsed?
That's never happened before.
You probably forced her to do something, didn't you?
No, not at all...
You two...
Just what have you done to my child?
We haven't done anything at all.
But...
Ma'am, please try and calm down.
Please, please.
Lately, I've heard that Ikuko has been behaving strangely.
Apparently, she talks to herself a lot.
I also hear that you're divorced.
That must be affecting her.
We see this often with children of divorced parents.
MITSUKO, COME HOME SOON
As a matter of fact, she used to behave oddly too.
Although in Mitsuko's case,
her mother suddenly just left their house, and left her behind.
You've never heard of her?
About the girl who disappeared two years ago?
Mitsuko Kawai?
She was one of our children here.
Is she still missing?
Yes.
I still think that she was kidnapped by some perverted individual.
Excuse me?
Apparently, you're late picking Ikuko up from kindergarten every day?
That can't be..."Every day"?
Is that incorrect?
Well, sometimes I get there late, because of work, but really...
"Every day"?
Who told you that?
And is it true you yanked on your daughter's arm
and dislocated her shoulder?
Dislocated it?
Why no, of course not!
What about your experiences in wandering about at night,
like you were sleepwalking?
Do you deny that?
It happened when I was a child.
My parents had divorced.
Apparently, I did such things without realizing it.
But it was only for a short period of time.
Well, I assure you that it would not happen now.
If the mother cannot show that she is capable of raising the child...
Don't just talk about anything you want to!
Why are you shouting about "talk about anything I want to?"
- But you did, didn't you? - Please, let's remain calm.
Who is this?
I'm Mr. Hamada's lawyer, Masato Nishioka.
Using a guy like this... Doing things like spying on us!
Hey, I'm just worried about Ikuko.
What are you saying, now of all times?
I don't care how you rationalize it, stop playing dirty!
Please, both of you.
We need to set the next date.
Right, sorry.
So it was you...
And the bag, you put it there.
What?
The red bag on the roof!
Why did you do that?!
What are you talking about?
Why?!
Ms. Matsubara!
Please cut it out!
Let's go inside, Mr. Hamada.
Are you all right?
I take it you're still in the middle of mediations.
If you let them see you like this,
they'll think you're unstable
which can only hurt you.
My secretary is off today, so this may be a little strong.
Whoops, I forgot the milk and sugar.
If they take my daughter away from me, I...
Your husband seems pretty serious.
We don't know where he'll move against you.
They say in cases with children under the age of six,
the mother has the advantage.
But if you continue along this path,
and your body and mind continue to weaken,
it will be nearly impossible for you to retain custody.
In any case, now is the most critical time.
If you wish to continue living with your daughter,
the first thing you need to do is pull yourself together.
Right...
Come now.
We can't get very far with you being down like that.
It'll be all right.
Let's do our best together.
Thank you very much.
Did she eat her lunch?
Sure did.
Girls are just the cutest things.
Auntie, leaving already?
Yeah, I have to buy something on the way home.
You know how he leaves it all to me.
Sorry, I know it's a long way.
You're the only one I can ask, Auntie.
It's all right.
You've done well with Ikuko.
A far cry from the mother you had.
My sister just couldn't think of anyone but herself.
Okay, see you later.
Thank you.
See you later.
Thank you.
Iku-chan?
Iku-chan!
Iku-chan...
Mama!
Iku-chan...
Iku-chan?
Are you there?
It's me.
Is Ikuko with you?
No.
Don't lie.
I wouldn't lie about that!
Why? What happened?
Yoshimi! What's going on?
Iku-chan!
Iku... Iku-chan!
Hello? Please open up!
Hello?!
Iku-chan, are you in there?
Iku-chan?
Iku-chan...
Iku-chan?
Iku-chan, are you in here?
Iku-chan?
Iku-chan!
Iku-chan! Iku-chan! Iku-chan!
SHOJI AND MITSUKO KAWAI
Mitsuko Kawai...
CHILD MISSING
MITSUKO KAWAI
May I come in?
Certainly.
Pardon me.
What are you doing?
We're moving out.
If you do that,
then Ikuko will have to change kindergartens again.
That's right.
Why not wait a while, until the deliberation is over?
That's impossible.
Ms. Matsubara...
You know that, as it stands, we're at a disadvantage, right?
On top of that, if you change the situation,
then the impression that the committee will get...
This is no time to be saying that!
Mitsuko has returned to the apartment upstairs,
and she's trying to take Ikuko away!
So the door to the apartment upstairs is unlocked, correct?
I'm sorry to bother you at such a busy time,
but I'd like for you to see this.
What the? How?
Mr. Kamiya!
But it should be locked.
Wow, you were right.
What is this?
The family of the girl that disappeared,
how long ago did they leave?
When was that?
It was the end of last year, wasn't it?
The father lived here for a while by himself.
He said that his daughter would have no place to come home to.
Which means, the water in here may have been running for over half a year.
Mr. Kamiya,
Ms. Matsubara complained to you about this once, didn't she?
Did you properly look into it then?
Mr. Kamiya,
there are a lot of people in line for your job, you know that.
There are a lot of people who can replace you.
Mr. Ohta,
I believe she also called you.
Well, I'm...
Well, what about the footsteps I heard?
Well, we know that Ikuko was in here.
So someone else could have gotten in too.
The bag was lying right here.
Did you throw the red bag away again?
Well, I threw it away once.
But I don't know anything about it being here again.
Maybe it's part of some superstition.
Either way, it's probably the work of some local kids.
But, man, look at how dirty this thing is.
Are you cleaning it properly?
That's the cleaning company's job.
I can go now, right?
Whoops.
I wonder if he's upset?
And then, right over there, there was someone over there.
Did you get a clear look?
It was just for an instant, but I saw something.
But I'll bet there was no one there when you checked.
Well, yes...
There's a highway over there, right?
And there's a neon sign on that building.
This water tank is exposed to light from all around.
So...
If something passed in front of the light,
it would cast a shadow on the tank.
So it wouldn't be strange if you saw something.
Although,
coming up here, all alone at night,
and seeing what you saw,
that would scare anyone.
Your husband's lawyer has looked this over,
and agreed to the terms.
I don't think that this will compromise your position at all.
Thank you very much.
Just remember, this is simply a set of legal points worked out by lawyers.
So just continue with your daily routine, and try and remain focused.
I will.
Well, I think that you'll be fine.
Ikuko.
Do you think that you're ready to go back to kindergarten?
I can!
Well, you seem better!
I would really like to thank you for all that you've done.
On my own, I was so confused.
Not at all.
I believe that Ikuko needs you.
And that you need her. That's all.
I'm so hopeless.
I can see now that I need to be stronger.
But it's not over yet.
The final decision will probably be made at the next session.
All right?
In any case, if anything does happen before then,
you must not act on your own.
Contact me immediately.
I will.
One, two, three!
All Auntie Kayo made was gruel.
That couldn't be helped, Iku-chan, because you were sick.
But the gruel was good, right?
I like this better.
She brought her own water to make dinner.
Her own water?
Yeah, she said the water here is no good.
That's true...
The water here is a little...
Are you sure you can go to school tomorrow?
I can!
All right! Then we need to get your things ready.
I'll go and get your bag.
Iku-chan, how did this get in here?
I don't know.
Did you go back to the roof?
Really, I don't know.
I won't get mad. I won't get mad, so just tell me the truth.
Did you go up to the roof?
I didn't!
Okay.
I'm sorry.
Connecting to personal voice mail...
Hello, this is Kishida.
Hello, Kishida Law Offices.
Hello, my name is Yoshimi Matsubara.
Is Mr. Kishida there?
He's out at the moment, and we don't expect him back today.
I see...
Well, thank you very much. Excuse me...
No!
Listen, don't move.
Mama...
Don't follow me!
WATER TANK CLEANING LOG
JULY 14, 1999
LAST SEEN JULY 14, 1999
Iku-chan...
Iku-chan!
What happened?!
What is this?
There we are.
I'll never leave you alone again.
I'll always be with you.
It's going to be all right.
Iku-chan?
Mama...
Mama?
Mama!
Mama?
Mama!
No!
You mustn't come any closer!
Please stop...
I'm not your mama!
Mama!
Iku-chan, no!
Stop!
Ikuko!
I'm...
...your mama.
Mama!
Mama, Mama!
TEN YEARS LATER
Should we call her?
Sure.
Hello? We're here.
Okay, we'll be waiting here. Bye.
Is she coming?
Yeah, said she'd ride her bike and be right down.
Want to buy some ice cream?
Yeah, let's buy some!
Let's go! Yeah, let's buy some!
Ikuko, what about you? Don't you want any?
What? No, I'm all set.
I don't remember much from when I was in kindergarten.
Just that for a very brief period,
I remember that I was living together with my mother.
- I'm sorry, Ai-chan! - Mama!
Thank goodness, right, Ai-chan?
I'm so sorry.
Oh, not at all.
See you tomorrow, Ai-chan.
Bye!
Bye-bye!
YOSHIMI & IKUKO MATSUBARA
Mama...
Welcome home.
You've gotten so big.
Why?
Nobody told me.
Have you been living here all this time?
My friend's house is right near here.
Everyone's going there to hang out today.
It's next to my old kindergarten.
The Shimizus, do you know them?
That's the kindergarten I went to, isn't it?
The one next to the bus stop.
This used to be mine.
So you're already in high school, are you, Iku-chan?
How time flies.
If only I had known,
I would have come to see you long before this.
It's all right.
Because you came to see me today.
Say, Mama?
Do you remember when you said that as long as I was with you,
you'd be okay, no matter what happened?
Of course.
Do you, well, still feel that way?
Yes, I do.
Thank goodness.
Hey, Mama,
could I live here, together with you?
I'll tell Papa myself, all right?
I'm sure that he'd say okay.
He has a new wife now, and my younger sisters.
I...
Iku-chan...
I'm sorry.
We can't be together.
Mama?
Hey, Mama?
My mother was here all that time, protecting me.
♪ Since then, I haven't been able to
♪ That's right, remember you for quite some time
♪ It was because of those busy days
♪ The cluster of pains
♪ Was always deep in my heart
♪ But recently, it looks like I've gotten better
♪ Today the sky looks like it might
♪ Reach all the way to the stars
♪ There's no way that I could ever wipe away
♪ All of the tears in the world
♪ I'm planning on always treasuring
♪ The small things that you taught me
♪ Hey, no matter how well
♪ I held you
♪ We'd get interrupted all of the sudden
♪ Could it possibly be that
♪ You knew that
♪ Which is why you smiled at me then?
♪ Hey, I wonder what kind of day
♪ Tomorrow is going to be?
♪ There's no way that I could ever wipe away
♪ All of the tears in the world
♪ I'm planning on always treasuring
♪ The small things that you taught me
♪ My memories are so much, so much more distinct
♪ Than sadness or recollections
♪ The very definite words you left in my heart
♪ The very definite words you left in my heart ♪