, also titled "Take Me Away!"The title "Take me away!" appears in the beginning credits of the film itself, before the title "ふりむけば愛" in Japanese script. is a 1978

Japanese film The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world; as of 2021, it was the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. In 2011 Japan produced 411 feature films that e ...

starring

Momoe Yamaguchi , known by her maiden name , is a Japanese former singer, actress, and idol whose career lasted from 1972 to 1980. Often simply referred to by her given name "Momoe," Yamaguchi is one of the most successful singers in Japanese music, releasing 3 ...

and

Tomokazu Miura is a Japanese actor. Life and career Miura attended Hino high school in Tokyo. He was originally a member of rock group RC Succession, but was asked to leave the group by their management when they signed a record contract. However, impressed b ...

and directed by

Nobuhiko Obayashi was a Japanese director, screenwriter and editor of films and television advertisements. He began his filmmaking career as a pioneer of Japanese experimental films before transitioning to directing more mainstream media, and his resulting film ...

. It is one of a series of idol films starring the ''golden combi'' (golden combination) of seventies idol film stars, Miura and Yamaguchi. It features the first foreign location and the first sex scene of the couple.

Plot

A piano tuner on holiday in San Francisco, Kyoko (Yamaguchi), meets Tetsuo (Miura), a Japanese layabout on the run from his debts in Japan. Kyoko tells Tetsuo she is a pianist who has come to San Francisco to kill herself. After enjoying a night in a bar full of exciting people, they become romantically involved, and she admits she was lying. Kyoko starts living in Tetsuo's apartment but then has to leave. She persuades Tetsuo to come back to Japan in September. Kyoko comes back to Japan and returns to her job tuning pianos. She is hit by a truck. The driver, Okouchi, apologizes, and offers compensation. But she refuses the offer, saying the accident was her fault. He falls in love with Kyoko, and proposes marriage. However, Kyoko cannot forget Tetsuo. She mails several letters to San Francisco but gets no reply. She later discovers the bar at which he promised to meet her does not exist. She flies to San Francisco, and finds Tetsuo lying in bed. An American woman emerges from the shower topless. Kyoko runs away. Tetsuo runs after her to the airport but she has already left. Tetsuo decides to go to Japan in pursuit of Kyoko. Back in Japan, Kyoko decides to marry Okouchi. Tetsuo turns up at the door and gets frustrated. Okouchi punches him when he tries to talk to Kyoko on the street. Tetsuo goes to deal with his debts, and ends up in jail. Kyoko and Okouchi get married and go to San Francisco for their honeymoon. Tetsuo's father gets him out of jail and lends Tetsuo his car to chase after Kyoko. Tetsuo intercepts them on the plane to America. He finally gains her attention by singing the song "Furimukeba Ai". Okouchi starts a fight with Tetsuo. Neither man emerges a clear winner but Okouchi decides he has had enough. Kyoko finds Tetsuo at the top of the hill overlooking the

Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the U.S. city of San Francisco, California—the northern tip of the San Francisco P ...

where they first met. Like the first time, Tetsuo is flying a kite; only this time, the kite reads "Kyoko".

Cast

Notes

References

External links

* * {{Nobuhiko Obayashi Japanese romantic drama films Films directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi Films set in San Francisco Films about pianos and pianists Films with screenplays by James Miki