Nishiyama (Takeshi Kaneshiro), Fujimoto (Masanobu Ando), and Takamura (Hiroyuki Ikeuchi) are three quasi-brothers (they grew up together in an orphanage) who plan to rob a bank and use the resulting money to fund their move to “paradise”, a gorgeous island that they see only on the back of a postcard. Before they raid the bank, we see the first signs of their close relationship and kind personalities. These “men”, looking little older than high school students, are anything but the violent, hardened, and unfeeling archetypes that we would expect from bank robbers. As the three criminals-to-be wait outside, factors inside the bank align for the unlucky few who will be caught up in the aftermath of the trio’s action. Midori (Eri Fukatsu) is a cute young bank clerk, engaged to be married to the wormy, flirtatious Nonomura (Masatoshi Hamada). She eagerly awaits the surprise party that she knows is coming, as the bank staff always gives a huge celebration when a member of the staff is getting married. As she deals with a feuding couple, Koichi (Toshio Kakei) and Kimiko (Sawa Suzuki), at the bank to divide up their funds for their divorce, a technology-inept electrician pesters Shimizu (Masahiro Komoto) about forgetting his PIN number. Eventually, Shimizu convinces the electrician that it is basically a game. Upstairs, an intimidating, silent man with a giant teddy bear, Sakamaki (Ken Watanabe) tries to exchange a staggering amount of pesos into yen. And in a back room, the rest of the bank staff dress up for Midori’s surprise party. At this point, the trio breaks in, guns blaring. At first Midori thinks its part of the surprise party, and her face fills with glee as she applauds the “performances”. However, when they shoot the security cameras, the illusion is gone. After rounding up Midori, Koichi, Kimiko, the electrician, Shimizu, and Sakamaki, Nishiyama forces the head of the bank (Ren Osugi) and his laid-back security guard to fill up a bag with money from the vault. In an attempt to save themselves, they shove Nishiyama out and close the door. At this point a metal screen shoots down on the other side, effectively trapping them. Some of the film’s funniest moments come from their exchanges locked-up here. As the night moves forward, things get infinitely more serious when the police, lead by Detective Nishikawa (Yozaburo Ito), put more and more allegations on the heads of the bank robbers. And as more and more things are revealed about the characters inside, Fujimoto begins to see parallels between the real people in the bank lobby and the characters of his favorite Anime, “Space Travelers”. Soon he has given each person, thief or “hostage” a persona, and they lead the police on to believe that they are a far more powerful and malicious than they really are. In addition to getting everyone in extremely dangerous positions with the police, the “game” of assuming bigger, more fantastical personalities allows them all to grow in a strange way.

Director Katsuyuki Motohiro with a solid, if not revolutionary, style. Unlike his earlier film Bayside Shakedown, Space Travelers focuses far more on its characters and story than on stylish visuals (which isn’t to say its plain – in fact, a few sequences are shot and put together so poetically that you’ll be simply awe-inspired), which serves the story well. The exceptions to his unadorned feel throughout are few and far between, but serve to remind the viewer that it is a conscious decision to provide most of the film’s substance and humor with the characters and situations and not with flashy visuals. This makes his later use of style pouring from the screen even more effective because it enhances the emotions of the characters instead of putting Motohiro’s style in the spotlight.

Space Travelers has a rather stunning cast. Takeshi Kaneshiro, star of such Hong Kong films as Chungking Express, headlines with Battle Royale’s Masanobu Ando, Kitano / Miike favorite Ren Osugi, and Blues Harp’s Hiroyuki Ikeuchi. Kaneshiro is convincing as the sincere and able leader, and there is a look of doubt and responsibility in his eyes as things get more and more out of hand. Ando here plays essentially the polar opposite of his Battle Royale character: here, he is simply a large child trying desperately to find as much intensity in life as can be found on his favorite TV show. Osugi isn’t given much to do dramatically, but his chemistry with the security guard is incredible. The pairing makes for the film’s most amusing moments. The rest of the cast, too, portray their characters with the intensity that they require. Thanks to the all around marvelous portrayals of truly interesting characters and relationships, the film is an excellent comedy that transcends that category into a moving character study and reminder of reality.

Space Travelers is a film that does great exploration of relationships and man’s desire to become something “bigger” than he really is. It takes chances that you would never expect from a comedy, and the hysterically absurd happenings all have a purpose in the film’s greater social commentary and its eventual tragic return to reality. It also assembles one of the finest groupings of Japanese actors, from all different generations, and entertains more thoroughly than most films could hope to. Sadly, the film’s excellence is weighted down slightly by an ending that, while poetic, leaves to many questions unanswered. Granted, the film cries to be left slightly open-ended, but hardly anything is brought to conclusion. Midori’s is the only fate we know, and Space Travelers creates frustration instead of fulfillment once the film has come to a close. Still, it succeeds in being both a better comedy and a better film than most things you can choose from, so I can’t recommend it enough to you.