The documentary film "Run! Run Run Melos," which follows the production process of the play of the same name, which was said to be a lost masterpiece in the high school theater world because it was performed without an audience and was never seen by the public due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is being screened at Shimokitazawa Tollywood cinema in Shimokitazawa, Tokyo, until March 5th. Since its release in March 2023, it has been screened every spring as a tradition during graduation season, and this year marks the fourth screening.
The story mainly focuses on four male high school students at the Kakeya branch of Shimane Prefectural Mitoya High School. In the summer of 2021, when they were in their second year, a hastily formed drama club was put together at the invitation of teacher Kameo Yoshihiro, and they entered a competition with only two weeks of practice. They performed a play called "Run! Run Run Meros," based on Dazai Osamu's novel "Run Meros," and were quickly defeated in the first regional competition. However, the four boys' passion to perform in front of an audience just once creates a "miracle." It is moving to watch the gradual transformation of these four self-proclaimed dropouts through theater.
A sequel, "Melos and the others," which follows the four students in their third year, is also currently being screened. While each begins to pursue their own dreams, only Shogo Soda, who cannot forget his stage performance, advances to the Chugoku Tournament with his one-man play, "Run! Yama Uzuki." This film records the final year of the four students' high school lives as they each go their separate ways after graduation.
On March 1st, after the screening of "Melos and Others" at 4:50 pm, there will also be an after-talk event with Soda Shogo, who is currently an actor living in Tokyo, and director Orikuchi Shinichiro. Both films can be viewed on major video streaming sites such as U-NEXT.
