# Strawberry Road (1991 film)

Strawberry Road (Japanese: ストロベリーロード, Hepburn: Sutoroberi rodo) is a 1991 Japanese drama film directed by Koreyoshi Kurahara and written by Nobuo Yamada. It is based on the bestselling memoir of the same name by Yoshimi Ishikawa, first published in 1988 by Hayakawa Publishing. The story follows two Japanese brothers who emigrate to rural California in the 1960s and start a strawberry farm.
As a Japanese-American co-production, Strawberry Road features a multi-national cast and crew, including several Japanese-American actors. It stars Japanese actor Ken Matsudaira in the lead role, alongside Mako, Toshiro Mifune, Mariska Hargitay and Tamotsu Ishibashi, with a cameo appearance by Pat Morita. Toho released the film theatrically on April 27, 1991, in Japan. Fred Karlin composed the film's score.

## Premise

Hisa Ishii (Ken Matsudaira) and his brother Akira (Tamotsu Ishibashi) emigrate from Japan to the United States. Settling in rural California, they start a strawberry farm and slowly integrate themselves into the community, which includes Japanese-Americans of both lengthy and brief residence.

## Plot

In 1965, before Japan has achieved economic miracle status and at the height of the Vietnam War, Hisa Ishii (Ken Matsudaira) emigrates to the Pomona Valley in search of the American Dream. He quickly gets a job at the large farm of Japanese-American Frank Machida (Mako). Frank is a Nisei who was interned in a camp during World War II. He employs several undocumented immigrants from Mexico and Japan. Hisa is troubled by the isolation he feels amidst the intense heat and hard work. He marries, but his American wife leaves because she cannot live on the farm with him. Hisa is overcome with loneliness, so he calls his younger brother, Akira (Tamotsu Ishibashi), and asks if he would be willing to join him in America. Akira accepts Hisa's proposition. They obtain a green card for Akira, though officially his immigration status is nebulous. Arriving in America, Akira plans to attend a local high school to improve his English and then proceed to college, all while working on the farm with his brother to earn his keep.
After much toil, Hisa finally saves up the money to acquire his own plot of land. He develops it, envisioning a bright future as a strawberry farmer. But Akira faces difficulties with farm work. He worries that he will become like the local homeless "blanket man" (Norihei Miki) who wanders the area. The old man had emigrated to America just like the Ishii brothers, but found only loneliness, moving from one place to another in search of work with only a blanket as his fortune. One day, the lonely old man suddenly reunites with his long-lost younger brother (Pat Morita), though his younger brother only speaks broken Japanese. He wants his older brother to live with him, but the old man is proud and wants to continue looking for work. Eventually, the old man relents and goes with his brother.
Meanwhile, Hisa, who continues to develop his nascent strawberry farm, is visited by his friend Akiko (Mari Natsuki) from his hometown, accompanied by an Italian-American woman named Jill (Mariska Hargitay). As love blossoms between Hisa and Jill, Akira meets and falls for an older married Japanese woman named Naoko (Junko Sakurada). Hisa manages to grow a large crop of strawberries, despite hindrances by the immigration bureau and fickle weather. Hisa grows strong as an American farmer, while Akira comes of age, learns about love and heartbreak, and gets accepted to an American university.
Four years after emigrating to America, having finally achieved his dream, Hisa proposes to Jill. She accepts his proposal. With the blessings of their families, many of whom remember times of racism and war, Hisa and Jill wed and give their marriage vows. After the ceremony, they make their way down the strawberry road, bathed in sunlight.

## Cast

* Ken Matsudaira as Hisa Ishii
* Mako as Frank Machida
* Mariska Hargitay as Jill Banner
* Toshiro Mifune as Taoka
* Tamotsu Ishibashi as Akira Ishii
* Art Metrano as Jill’s father
* Norihei Miki as Old man on hill
* Pat Morita as Old man's brother (credited as Noriyuki 'Pat' Morita)
* Mao Daichi as Daughter of old man's brother
* Junko Sakurada as Naoko
* Mari Natsuki as Akiko
* Shigehide Kawahira as George Noda
* Jim Ishida as Pete
* Rocky Aoki as Rocky Aota
* Victoria Gallegos as Maria
* Julia Buis as Student journalist (uncredited)
* Dennis Falt as Farmer (uncredited)
* Mieko Harada

## Background

The original novel was a bestseller in Japan. It was first published in the English language in 1991, the year of the film's release. For his work on the novel, Ishikawa received the 20th Sōichi Ōya Nonfiction Award in 1989. He wrote two sequels: Strawberry Road Part II: Strawberry Boy (1990) and Strawberry Road Part III: Garden Boy (1994), neither of which were adapted into films.

## Production

The film's production office was located in Monterey, California.
Editor Akira Suzuki had worked with director Kurahara on multiple prior productions, including the films I Am Waiting, Sunset, Sunrise, The Glacier Fox, Antarctica and Umi e, See You. Additionally, co-producer Junichi Mimura had served as assistant director on The Glacier Fox and writer of Elephant Story, and screenwriter Nobuo Yamada had written several earlier Kurahara films, including Safari 5000, Sunset, Sunrise and Two in the Amsterdam Rain.

## Home media

The film was released on VHS, but has never been distributed on any other form of physical media.