University of Laughs (2004)

Yakusho Koji stars as a government censor in 1940 whose job it is to ensure the patriotism of the plays in the theater district. They must be ideologically sound, loyal to the Emperor, supportive of the Japanese war effort, and full of truth, justice and the Japanese way. Any deviation is seen as an effort to undermine homeland security as Japan brings peace and harmony to the world through guns and bombs. Enter Tsubaki, a flashy young comedian whose latest farce is a send-up of "Romeo and Juliet". Yakusho doesn't get the play - it's not even that funny. He is about to reject it outright when X begins to plead: he'll make changes, any changes at all. And so Yakusho starts to insist on edits, first motivated by political concerns, and then motivated by aesthetic ones. The young writer diligently reworks his play however he's ordered, and it actually starts to get better. Before long, the two men are engaged in a conspiracy of two, crafting the funniest play they can imagine. But, of course, there's a war going on, and none of this can end well. Edit Translation

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