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Sumo Do, Sumo Don't

Play trailer 1:35 Poster for Sumo Do, Sumo Don't 1992 1h 45m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 2 Reviews 80% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
College student Shuhei (Masahiro Motoki, Departures) finds out he is lacking a few credits for graduation. His crafty professor, a sumo enthusiast, says he'll let it slip if Shuhei joins the school team and competes in the regional university tournament. Shuhei begrudgingly joins the team, which includes one member, the eccentric repeat student Aoki, and the pretty club manager Natsuko. They are soon joined by a ragtag group of new members including an outspoken British exchange student and a tough overweight coed. Everyone seems driven by ulterior motives at first. Yet as their trials and tribulations see them grow though hilariously outrageous shenanigans, so too does the team cultivate a winning spirit for the traditional Japanese pastime. Sumo Do, Sumo Don't finds director Masayuki Suo (Shall We Dance?) refining his themes and motifs in this "fully entertaining, sometimes laugh out loud movie about sports underdogs who rise to success" (Japan On Film).
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Sumo Do, Sumo Don't

Critics Reviews

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Grant Watson Fiction Machine 09/06/2023
10/10
A rare treasure, and a pinnacle of its genre. Go to Full Review Chase Burns The Stranger (Seattle, WA) 12/09/2021
The final sumo matches are genuinely exciting. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Epic-artist T @RT86527379 06/18/2024 GYATTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!! See more 03/13/2016 I came across this movie after watching leading actor Masahiro Motoki in the Oscar-winning film Departures. I must say Sumo Do, Sumo Don't has become one of my favourite Japanese films! I was worried that I wouldn't really understand the Japanese humour but in the end I was laughing my head off! The movie was sincere, endearing and yes, hilarious. It even (briefly) tackled the issue of women in this male-dominated sport, no pun intended! This film should be a must-watch for all people interested in Japanese culture . . . and humour! See more 09/24/2013 This movie was the first I recall seeing in my Japanese class that was Japanese-languaged. And what a movie to watch! At first, I'll admit I haven't been looking forward to this; I'd just assume that it would be a Karate Kid ripoff, but seeing the movie in whole just shut me up and proved me wrong. And I think this film deserves to be in the list of foreign films you must see before you die. See more 06/03/2013 Simple story, unpretentious, but elegant, with a theme for us westernes, of infinite exoticism: amateur sumo. See more 07/29/2012 Feel-good sports film, Japanese style, with plenty of charm and humour. See more 01/28/2012 One of the funniest films I've watched to date - not exactly laugh-out-loud, but the humour is ingrained on a cultural level and one appreciates and gains insight into the sumo wrestling culture and its place in contemporary Japan. See more Read all reviews
Sumo Do, Sumo Don't

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Cast & Crew

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Masayuki Suo

Director

Motoki Masahiro

Shuhei Yamamoto

Shimizu Misa

Natsuko Kawashima

Naoto Takenaka

Aoki Tomio

Kaori Mizushima

Chie Asai

Hiromasa Taguchi

Hosaku Tanaka
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Sumo Do, Sumo Don't

Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t: Trailer 1 Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t: Trailer 1 1:35 View more videos
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Sumo Do, Sumo Don't

Sumo Do, Sumo Don't (1992) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis College student Shuhei (Masahiro Motoki, Departures) finds out he is lacking a few credits for graduation. His crafty professor, a sumo enthusiast, says he'll let it slip if Shuhei joins the school team and competes in the regional university tournament. Shuhei begrudgingly joins the team, which includes one member, the eccentric repeat student Aoki, and the pretty club manager Natsuko. They are soon joined by a ragtag group of new members including an outspoken British exchange student and a tough overweight coed. Everyone seems driven by ulterior motives at first. Yet as their trials and tribulations see them grow though hilariously outrageous shenanigans, so too does the team cultivate a winning spirit for the traditional Japanese pastime. Sumo Do, Sumo Don't finds director Masayuki Suo (Shall We Dance?) refining his themes and motifs in this "fully entertaining, sometimes laugh out loud movie about sports underdogs who rise to success" (Japan On Film).
Director
Masayuki Suo
Creator
Kai Shimada, Katsutoshi Ishikawa
Screenwriter
Masayuki Suo
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
Japanese
Runtime
1h 45m