Half a Confession
Former police detective Soichiro (Terao Akira) turns himself in at his local police station and confesses to the murder of his wife (Harada Mieko) at their home, three days earlier. Under questioning by his former colleague, he explains that the shock of their son's death from leukemia brought about the onset of Alzheimer's disease in his wife, which ultimately led her to ask Soichiro to end her suffering. However, despite rigorous interrogation, he steadfastly refuses to explain his movements in the two days between his wife's death and his surrender. An ambitious reporter begins her own investigation, and the ensuing trial becomes a standoff between a zealous prosecutor and a young judge with a personal stake in the defendant's plight. A verdict is reached, but it is only then that the sad truth of the missing two days emerges. Winner of Best Film and Best Actor at the 2005 Japan Academy Prize, this powerful and socially conscious drama was responsible for an unprecedented surge in marrow donor registrations.
| Director: | Sasabe Kiyoshi |
| Studio: | Toei Company |
| Writer(s): | Kiyoshi Sasabe, Toshiyuki Tabe, Hideo Yokoyama |