Sideshow and Janus Films have snagged the North American distribution rights for Cloud, the new action thriller by Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa.
The film, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2024, was Japan’s official submission for the 97th Oscar Awards. It will have its theatrical release later this summer.
According to the film’s official synopsis, the title refers to the “nebulous and formless Internet service” that is so much a part of modern life. Cloud stars Masaki Suda in the role of an unscrupulous reseller of online merchandise who accepts a business deal that leads to him being stalked by a violent mob stoked by social media.
In a joint statement by Sideshow and Janus, Cloud is described as “a wildly entertaining film about our anonymous digital existence that transforms itself into a vengeance driven action flick that only Kiyoshi Kurosawa could have dreamed up. We are proud to work with Nikkatsu to bring what we consider one of Kurosawa’s best films to American audiences this summer.”
Describing his motivations for making the film, Kurosawa was quoted by IndieWire as saying: ““In the obscure corners of modern-day Japan, violent incidents sometimes occur for seemingly no reason whatsoever. When the causes are investigated, it becomes apparent that a system of sorts exists through which petty grudges and frustrations are accumulated and blown out of proportion by the Internet.”
He added: “I wondered if such a phenomenon would serve as subject matter for an action film, and began developing this project. Its protagonist is an extremely average man who, through his small-time moneymaking schemes, desires to gain even the slightest advantage over others. In this story, he carelessly incurs the ire of those around him, and ultimately finds himself dragged into a deadly battle with his life on the line.”
Among Kurosawa’s film portfolio are other films in the horror or thriller category, including Serpent’s Path, Chime, Cure and Pulse. The director had earlier won the Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard Award for Best Director for Journey to the Shore (2015) and the Venice Film Festival’s Silver Lion for Best Director, for Wife of a Spy (2020).
Kiyoshi Kurosawa interview on “Cloud.”
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