The Japanese Film Night Season Series will conclude on Friday, Oct. 27, at 7:30 p.m. with a free screening of “Hachiko Monogatari” (1987, 107 minutes) at West Los Angeles United Methodist Church, 1913 Purdue Ave. in Los Angeles.
This multi-award-winning movie is based on the true story of Tokyo University Professor Hidesaburo Ueno and his beloved Akita dog, Hachiko. The devoted dog became famous for waiting for his master’s arrival on the 4 o’clock train in the same place at the station every day, through wind and rain, summer and winter.
One day, the professor suffered a brain hemorrhage while giving a lecture and died without ever returning to the train station. Each day, for the next nine years, nine months and 15 days — until his own death — Hachiko continued his vigil, waiting to greet his master at precisely the same time.
Hachiko is buried beside his master in Aoyama Cemetery in Tokyo. A bronze memorial statue of the faithful dog was set up in front of Shibuya Station in his honor and March 8 was designated as International Akita Day in celebration of this inspiring breed.
Directed by Seijiro Koyama and written by Kaneto Shindo, the film stars Tatsuya Nakadai, Kaoru Yachigusa, Kei Yamamoto, Mako Ishino and Hisashi Ogawa.
An American version, “Hachi: A Dog’s Tale,” starring Richard Gere and Joan Allen, was released in 2009.
For more information on the church, call (310) 479-1379 or visit http://wlaumc.com.