Audition

Seven years after losing his wife, film producer Shigeharu Aoyama is urged by his friend and colleague Yasuhisa Yoshikawa to remarry. The two men arrange a fake audition for a television production, using it as a way for Aoyama to meet potential partners. Among the applicants is Asami Yamazaki, a quiet young woman who makes a strong impression on him. He begins seeing her, and the relationship gradually reveals a side to her that he did not expect.

Takashi Miike directed the film, the fourth of the 42 features he has directed in chronological order, following Dead or Alive and preceding Ichi the Killer. Daisuke Tengan wrote the screenplay, and Satoshi Fukushima and Akemi Suyama produced it. Ryo Ishibashi plays Aoyama, Eihi Shiina plays Asami, and Jun Kunimura plays Yoshikawa, with Tetsu Sawaki, Renji Ishibashi and Miyuki Matsuda among the twenty credited cast members. Made in Japan, the 115-minute drama and horror film was released in March 2000.

Audiences rate the film at 7.1 out of 10 on IMDb, based on more than 87,000 votes, and 7.1 out of 10 on TMDB from a much smaller tally. A critics' rating of 7.4 out of 10 from 83 reviews places it slightly above those audience scores.