Longtime Hollywood heartthrob Brad Pitt is returning to the big screen, with a few other notable stars, for the movie Bullet Train. Directed by David Leitch, the movie is Pitt’s first after 2019's Once Upon a Time in... Hollywood. The new film is an adaptation of KÅtarÅ Isaka’s 2010 novel Maria Beetle. The novel, originally in Japanese, was published in English as Bullet Train. The movie adaptation includes many other famous faces such as Joey King, Sandra Bullock, Andrew Koji, Hiroyuki Sanada, Brian Tyree Henry, and Michael Shannon.KÅtarÅ Isaka is a bestselling Japanese author. His novel, Maria Beetle, is a dark, satirical thriller that follows a perilous train journey of five highly trained and motivated assassins. The journey takes place from Tokyo to Morioka as the characters of Satoshi, Kimura, Ladybug, and the duo Tangerine and Lemon battle it out to see who gets off the train alive at the last terminal. The novel is packed with action and energy with a complex set of twists, turns, and double-crosses. The thriller, much like its author, was a resounding success in Japan and emerged as an original, bestselling novel.
The Movie
The Bullet Train adaptation is set to loosely follow the same plot as the novel. The Sony Pictures synopsis for the movie reads:
Based on the Japanese novel, Maria Beetle by Kotaro Isaka, five assassins find themselves on a fast-moving bullet train from Tokyo to Morioka with only a few stops in between. They discover their missions are not unrelated to one another. The question becomes, who will make it off the train alive and what awaits them at the terminal station?
Despite these claims from Sony, talking to HERO Magazine in March 2022, actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson said that although the movie started by being faithful to the dark, satirical tone of the novel, the tone changed as production progressed. “Originally, this thing was quite a dark, R-rated, vicious action piece, but we hammed it up and made it fun,” he said, “I don’t know what happened, but it became a comedy!”.
Fans of the novel and future audiences of Bullet Train are now left with the question of whether the movie adaptation will do justice to the much-loved book.
Claims About Bullet Train
Although some fans look forward in excitement to the adaptation's changes, some have raised concerns about issues they think the movie may hold. These are mainly to do with Asian representation in the adaptation and what this might mean in the context of Hollywood.
Speaking to AsAmNews, David Inoue, the Executive Director of the Japanese American Citizens League, expressed his thoughts regarding allegations of whitewashing:
“I absolutely think charges of whitewashing are accurate as this is a story based around what were originally Japanese characters and it remains set in Japan. Foreigners, or gaijin, remain a distinct minority in Japan, and to populate the movie with so many in the leading roles is ignoring the setting.”
In analyzing the novel against what has been released about the movie, Inoue’s claims seem valid as non-Asian characters appear to comprise the majority of the movie cast. Inoue further said that non-Asian actors should be questioned regarding their relationship with the Asian community. “To see a film set in Japan with Japanese characters only as the background is offensive, and some of them should have been asking questions about this,” he said. Speaking specifically of Pitt and his influence in Hollywood, Inoue stated, “someone of Brad Pitt’s stature has the ability to do that, and he failed to say anything.”
In addition to issues with Asian representation in the adaptation, viewers have also expressed concern over the differences they’ve noted in the portrayal of Japan in the trailer of the movie. One of the significant differences is that the bullet train in the film doesn’t resemble the one in the novel or, in fact, trains in Japan. This is regardless of the fact that the movie is set in Japan. Observant viewers, analyzing the train's environment and digital displays, have also realized that the train in the adaptation heads from Tokyo to Shin-Osaka. This is a direction opposite to the one specified in the novel. The change in direction may be attributable to the directors wanting to connect with their international audience by having the train take a route traveled by many international travelers who journey from Tokyo to Kyoto.
The Author's View
A claim has also been made that the Japan portrayed in the adaptation is an "amped-up" version of the real Japan, with elements that would appeal to an international audience being highlighted. However, the Japanese people have responded positively to the portrayal of Japan in the trailer. Isaka took to Twitter to express his thoughts via a handwritten image. The English translation of the message reads, “What’s this Japan!? Even though I was surprised, I was excited by the gorgeous across and their energetic, violent scenes! I hope it will be a fun movie that will drive away dark feelings!”
Will Justice Be Done?
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Whether the adaptation will do justice to its namesake novel will only be revealed on July 29, 2022. Despite allegations of whitewashing, fans of the book also appear excited to see what differences the movie may hold. The author of the novel giving his seal of approval is a definite plus point for the adaptation. Further, Pitt is a much-loved actor in Japan, being affectionately nicknamed “Burapi.” This, too, works in favour of the adaptation as, despite changes, the presence of “Burapi” may carry the movie to success.
It also has to be admitted that the cinematic requirements of a movie adaptation deem that the adaptation differs from its source work. While plot details may be adhered to, the directors of the adaptation should be afforded the creative freedom to make their work different, authentic, and original. The same goes for Bullet Train. As such, the justice done by the adaptation to its namesake source should be evaluated on its own merit, with the unique differences between the mediums of novel and movie in mind.