Mother, the town that nobody knows became the number one in the world.
We worked altogether and became the number one in the world.
February 28, 2015
2036 snowmen
Akahira city, Hokkaido
1406 challengers
Everybody had a nice smile.
I used to think what I should do by myself and was always frustrated.
I wanted to go to Furano to find that answer.
But the answer was in this town where I arrived at by accident.
This town had nothing.
But it was revived by a lot of smiley faces.
Mother, I'm glad to arrive at this town.
Let's go.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.
Hey!
Mother, why are you here?
Inconvenient handymen
Mother!
I thought that you were more miserable.
But you look good.
Episode 12
Why are you here?
Did you say mother? Is she here?
Pi-chan! Pi-chan!
Nice to see you again!
Long time no see you.
Anyway, don't call me Pi-chan.
Pi-chan?
It's from Ume-Plum-P-Pi-chan!
Stop it.
Do you know Batsu-san?
Batsu-san?
Yes, I divorced 3 times.
Ah, that's why you call him Batsu-san.
That's you, Pi-chan.
Are you Jun-kun's mother?
Are you Matsui-san?
Yes.
Thank you for taking good care of my son.
You're welcome.
It's cold.
Why don't we go inside?
Ah, if you don't mind, can you leave us alone?
I have a lot to catch up on.
Wait! I'm confused right now.
Don't worry.
Is she your mother?
Yes.
I see.
Pi-chan.
Don't call me that.
Its cold, isn't it?
Yes.
It's been a while since I came to Hokkaido last time.
Excuse me.
Please sit down.
Thank you for taking good care of my son.
You're welcome.
He helped us a lot too.
He did?
Did he do well?
He is stubborn and strongly opinionated.
Didn't he cause trouble?
Don't worry. He is a typical young man.
They seem to have a special relationship.
It's more than 25 years ago when you worked as a correction officer, right?
That's right.
Sanae always asked my advice.
She said that you worked too much and didn't pay attention to the family.
I knew that.
I introduced you to her, right?
My husband asked me persistently if I knew somebody for you.
That was why I introduced Sanae to you.
After having divorced Sanae, I got married a few times. But our marriage didn't last long.
And you divorced 3 times in total.
That's right.
Have you seen Sanae since then?
I've looked for her, but couldn't find her.
And I misunderstood that Jun-kun was my own son.
Because both sons have same name.
Yes, they're both Jun.
That confused me too.
My husband always became upset about that.
Don't use the confusing name!
My son's Jun means pure, (Chinese letter)
and your Jun means moisture (Chinese letter).
They used to change a pitch of the voice to call each other.
My son is Jun, and yours is Jun.
Jun, Jun...
It's no difference.
This is too much effort.
When we called Jun, both turned around.
Since they were only 2 years old at that time, they didn't talk yet.
But they knew their name.
Jun-kun of your son,
Haven't you seen him since you divorced her?
Never.
Were you surprised when you saw me?
No, instead I had a bad feeling.
Didn't your father die?
Yes.
Batsu-san keeps saying that Jun-kun is his own son.
He is under the wrong impression.
My father is dead.
But your mother came here.
And she calls Batsu-san Pi-chan.
What are they talking right now?
I see, he is your Jun.
That's right. He doesn't look like you, anyway.
Doesn't he?
He is good-looking like me.
So you say!
Well, be prepared and listen to my story.
What about it?
Well, be prepared and listen to my story.
What about it?
Your Jun-kun was killed in an earthquake disaster.
He was a fireman.
I got a letter from Sanae.
She said that since Jun-kun had a strong sense of justice like you, he went to the disaster area to help people.
And he died there.
This was in a letter.
He was just 22 years old and a fireman.
I wanted to give this to you as soon as possible.
But I didn't know where you were.
Then, when I got a letter from my son, he mentioned the name Umemoto.
I thought that it may have been you.
Pi-chan, I understand your depression.
My son also lost father before having known the warmth of father.
Everybody lives with a rough time.
That's mother and son.
You may think that what you say cheers me up.
But actually, you hurt my feeling.
What? Did I say something bad to you?
I see...He died...
What do you do?
About what?
When we think of this plot twist, I think that Batsu-san is your father.
That's the truth.
Right?
Welcome back.
Sorry to taking your place.
Thanks to you, we could talk a lot.
Well...Can I ask something?
What's wrong?
Please tell us the truth.
About what?
Are you my father?
No, he isn't. Your father is dead.
That's right.
As you always say, your father is dead.
I'm a complete stranger to you.
My husband loved Furano.
He showed Furano video to Jun all the time.
And he named his son, Jun.
(There's a famous Japanese drama "Kita no Kuni Kara". It's filmed in Furano and son's name is Jun)
Jun-kun came from that.
That's right.
Ah, I saw a big ski slopes on my way here.
I want to snowboard.
Can you do that?
I've never done that before.
That's why I want to try it.
I'll fall many times and a young handsome boy comes to teach me how to snowboard.
A handsome boy...How old are you?
Don't worry.
What do you call that...That... A big glasses...
Do you mean goggles?
That's it!
If I wear goggles, he can't see my wrinkled face,
Good bye.
So suddenly?
He didn't come to see her off.
He seemed to be depressed.
I'm the one who want to be depressed.
You told me that your son had died.
Yes.
I don't know what you've been planning, but isn't it the time to tell him the truth?
My son died. That's the truth.
If it were possible, I'd want to believe that he'd arrive.
I'd want to hold him.
Why don't you hold him now?!
He's dead!
How long do you insist on lying?!
Listen, where the hell are parents who lie that their son was dead?!
Tell me if anybody you know!
It's true that my son is dead.
Then, how about everything what you've done to Jun-kun until now?
It was my misunderstanding.
I've heard...
Are you leaving this town?
I'll miss you.
I'll really miss you.
Talking about handymen,
Matsui-san, Takeyama-san and Umemoto-san,
It's Pine, Bamboo and Plum (Chinese characters).
Pine, Bamboo and Plum...You're so smart. (Together an auspicious grouping in Japan)
Since I work at the ad agency,
I'm very sensitive to such a thing.
I see.
Are you sensitive only for the words?
Our relationship is very pure!
I'm sensitive all sorts of things.
What?
Don't treat me as a child.
What?
Bats-san's son is dead.
What do you mean?
So, it was my misunderstanding.
Then, why did my mother come here?
According to what I heard, they've known each other for a long time.
And she came here to tell him that his son was dead.
It's a lie.
What?
Are you trying to cheat on me again?
Cheat on you? Again?
When did I cheat on you?
Do you make me go back to Tokyo?
What?
I'm an up-and-coming screenwriter.
When I had an issue with director, I somehow arrived at this town.
But the industry has a high hope for me.
Even though what you're saying gets on my nerves, I'll listen to you.
I have a bright future.
I shouldn't waste any more time here.
Well, even though I'm becoming very irritated, I'll listen to you more.
But what's the purpose for them to lie to you?
That's what parental love is all about.
For parents, the happiness of their children is the most important.
Until now, Batsu-san stuck to his convictions that he was my father.
But he finally realized what he should have done as a father.
What should he do?
He hid the truth for the happiness of his son.
So, he asked my mother to come here.
It was the perfect plan.
That's mother. What mother says carries conviction.
They made a secret arrangement and lied to me that I wasn't his son,
to make me go back to Tokyo.
Hey, why do you always want to be the core of the story?
That's the truth. Everything is clear.
Batsu-san is my father since he made efforts like this.
You're wrong.
Matsui-san, you have a hand in this plan, right?
Oh my god, it's no use telling him anything right now.
I'll buy you a drink.
What?
Are you going back to Tokyo tomorrow, right?
Yes.
What would you like to drink?
Can you buy me two drinks?
May I join you?
Yes.
I'm going back to Tokyo tomorrow.
I know.
Thank you for everything.
No, rather I'm the one that caused you more trouble.
I'm sorry.
Thank you very much.
I didn't do anything.
Take care.
Batsu-san, you too.
Thank you.
My last night in this town, I drank a lot.
Batsu-san only said "Don't worry" even though I said anything.
But was it my imagination that his eyes watching me were very warm?
All right.
Matsui-san.
What?
Can you get out?
All right.
Thank you.
Ouch!
Sorry.
I'm sorry.
Ouch!
Sorry.
I'll miss you.
I'll be back.
Everybody said so and left this town. And nobody came back.
I promise to come back here.
Takeyama Jun.
Yes?
Take (bamboo) doesn't take root in Hokkaido.
That's why we don't have any bamboo forests.
Really?
It's not the place for you to live.
Thank you for everything.
Don't worry.
What?
Don?t worry.
This is for you even though it's not much.
You'd sue me if I gave you only 500 yen.
Unfortunately, I can't pay you a lot.
Thank you.
I wanted to rub mud against money as a prank.
But since the ground is covered with snow, I couldn't do that.
Thank you.
Don't you want me to see you off?
I strayed into this town.
But on the way back, I want to create a new path to the future by myself.
Ouch!
It's really painful.
So, is this town helpful?
What do you mean?
Kumagera (Dryocopus martius).
Kumagera?
Ah, you don't know this name, do you?
Woodpecker.
Woodpecker?
Yes, Woodpecker.
Kumagera has a black body and a red head.
Ah, this tree house!
That's right! It's Kumagera!
It's designated as a special national treasure and an endangered species.
It's called "Chiputachikappu" among the Ainu,
and has been worshipped as a god who leads the way.
I see.
So, he led me to this town.
I hope so.
Ah,
What happened?
Isn't it obvious?!
I think that my guessing is right, but...
I think that it doesn't make sense to live separately.
What happened to your job?
I quit.
But if I really want to keep my job, I should be able to do in here too!
Thank you in advance!
Kumagera must have done this.
She was led by Kumagera too.
What?
Matsui-san...
Are you crying?
No.
Yes, you are.
I'm not crying.
Help me!
Please give Batsu-san my regards.
He is there.
What?
It starts snowing.
Yes.
Mind your own business, but can I talk about your father?
My father?
Yes.
Your father and I were both a correction officer at a same prison.
He was an earnest man.
He took care of work and a family very well.
He faced criminals in sincerity.
He always said,
"It's not criminal's fault. Environment let them commit a crime"
"Everybody is an angel when they're a baby. They're not wholly evil"
He had a habit of saying so.
I see.
It was an accident.
Your parents and you went out.
When your mother forgot something in a store, she went back to a store.
When she got out, your father was run over by a car and died.
That happened in front of her.
That's why your mother doesn't want to talk about that.
I see.
But your mother was happy because you became a mature man.
I'm pleased too.
You may not remember, but I often carried you in my arms when you were a baby.
I got it.
I got it?
Don't worry.
You don't have to make up a story.
I'm prepared.
A life in this town made me strong.
What about making up a story?
Didn't you and my mother arrange beforehand to tell the same story?
What are you talking about?
Even though you can deceive the amateur, you can't deceive a professional screenwriter.
This is the truth.
There's a big mistake in your story.
A big mistake?
Three of us went out,
and when mother came back from a store, father got an accident.
How about a kid?
They took their little kid with them, right?
Where was that kid?
He disappeared from your story.
Your story has loose end.
Jun, don't go there.
Hey, I have to go now.
Thank you for everything.
Mother, I'm going back to Tokyo.
I have to say good-bye to this town where I strayed into in a day of the snowstorm.
I got bewildered at first.
Because I was biased.
I feel much better now.
Like the snow covering this town, I seem to become white and pure.
Mother?
What's this?
Hey, Jun!
Thanks god, you're still here.
This is for you.
Sorry to give you only such things.
You gave me a lot of things.
Thank you very much.
Take care.
Thank you.
Good luck for everything.
Can I say something to you?
What?
Father, take care.
No, you misunderstand it!
That's not true.
You misunderstand it.
That's not true!
I'm not your father!
I'll be back one day.
I become stronger and will be back.
See you.
All right. That was the last scene.
We finished filming!
Thank you for your hard work!
Director, thank you for your hard work.
Thank you.
Thank you for your hard work.
This is the winter story of an unknown town written by Takeyama Jun.
Can't you find a ticket?
No...
Ah, sorry.
Where's my ticket?
I thought that I put it in this pocket.