Tengoku no honya - koibi (2004) Heaven's Bookstore 

Directed by Tetsuo Shinohara

Starring Yuko Takeuchi, Tetsuji Tamayama

A romantic drama that reaches beyond our plane of existence.

A pianist, Kenta gets sacked then totally drunk, the next day he wakes up in a strange room and finds out hes in Heaven. Not the Heaven of Christian interpretation, this is more of a Buddhist Heaven, a place to live out the hundred years everyone is allotted before being reborn into a new life. If you die at the age of thirty-five, youll stay in Heaven for sixty-five years and then be reborn without any memory of your previous life or your time in heaven.

After accepting the fact that hes in Heaven (and still alive) hes given a job in Heavens Bookstore, what he doesnt know is that he has another job to do that will help someone else and make him a better person. The other person "Shoko" was a composer and pianist on earth, since dying she hasnt felt able to continue either playing or composing.

Meanwhile on Earth, a young woman Kanako is trying to organise a firework display but has heard about a particular type of firework called Wabi which used to be made by a local man "Takimoto". He stopped making them after his fiance was deafened in one ear after an accident with the fireworks, they split up soon after and several years later she died. The feeling of guilt for the accident has never left him. 

Two separate story lines but closely connected, "Shoko" in Heaven and Kanako are related (both roles are played by Yuko Takeuchi) and both stories bring about a change for the better in the central characters. 

The film shouldnt work but it does, everything falls into place (in a somewhat predictable manner) and for a few brief moments, Heaven and Earth are connected, a bit of a tearjerker but in a positive way. Entertaining, good music, good dual roles from Yuko Takeuchi, and an interesting interpretation of Heaven.

Nice light entertainment, well made, decent acting, good for a relaxing evening with your partner.

Cheers Trev

No BBFC rating but certainly no more than a PG.

Region 2 ntsc dvd available from Shichoku, probably available on Region 3 ntsc as well.