# Fuon

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2004 Japanese film

Fuon Film poster Directed by Yōichi Higashi Screenplay by Shun Medoruma[1][2] Based on Kazane and Utsumi by Shun Medoruma [1][2][3] Produced by Tetsujiro Yamagami[1][2][3] Starring Muneo Uema Haruko Kato Miho Tsumiki Ken Mitsuishi Saburo Kitamura[1][2] Cinematography Takahiro Tsutai[1][2] Edited by Yōichi Higashi[1][2] Music by Taraf de Haïdouks Takashi Hirayasu[2] Production company SIGLO Ltd.[1][2] Distributed by SIGLO Ltd.[1][2] Release date July 31, 2004 (2004-07-31) (Japan) [1][2] Running time 106 minutes[1][2] Country Japan Language Japanese

***Fuon*** ([Japanese](/source/Japanese_language): 風音)[1][2], also known as ***The Crying Wind***, is a 2004 [Japanese](/source/Cinema_of_Japan) [coming of age](/source/Coming_of_age) [drama film](/source/Drama_(film_and_television)) directed by [Yōichi Higashi](/source/Y%C5%8Dichi_Higashi).[1][2] It was adapted by [Shun Medoruma](/source/Shun_Medoruma) from two of his own short stories, "Kazane" and "Utsumi".[1][3] The film tells the story of two young boys in [Okinawa](/source/Okinawa_Islands) who are fascinated by local tales of the "Crying Head", the skull of a [kamikaze](/source/Kamikaze) pilot shot down in [World War II](/source/World_War_II). It stars Muneo Uema (a non-professional actor)[1] in the lead role, in addition to [Haruko Kato](/source/Haruko_Kato), Miho Tsumiki, [Ken Mitsuishi](/source/Ken_Mitsuishi) and Saburo Kitamura.[1][2] [Takashi Hirayasu](/source/Takashi_Hirayasu) and the group [Taraf de Haïdouks](/source/Taraf_de_Ha%C3%AFdouks) co-composed the film's score.[1][2] *Fuon* premiered at the 27th [Montreal World Film Festival](/source/Montreal_World_Film_Festival)[3] before being theatrically released by SIGLO Ltd. on July 31, 2004, in [Japan](/source/Japan).[1][2]

## Premise

The setting is the present-day, more than fifty years after the end of [World War II](/source/World_War_II), in a small seaside village in northern [Okinawa](/source/Okinawa_Islands). In a burial ground on a cliff near the ocean, resides the skull of a [kamikaze](/source/Kamikaze) pilot who was shot down in the final days of the war. The villagers call it the "Crying Head" for the sound the bullet hole in the skull makes when the wind blows. They have enshrined it as the guardian deity of the island and fear it.

Fleeing her abusive husband, Kazue and her 10 year old son, Masashi, come to live in the village with her elderly mother. There Masashi befriends 12 year old Akira, the grandson of aging fisherman Seikichi. The boys are fascinated by tales of the skull. One summer day, they decide to find it. After locating it, they mess around with the "Crying Head". From that day on, the "sound of the wind" stops, and ripples begin to rise in the peaceful daily life of the village. At the same time, an old woman visits the island. She is the pilot's former lover. She is dying and wishes to find out what happened to him.

As the memories of those who live on the island, those who come from outside the island, and those who died on the island overlap, everyone's secrets are slowly revealed.

## Cast

- Muneo Uema as Seikichi Toma

- [Haruko Kato](/source/Haruko_Kato) as Shiho Fujino - Mio Kato as Shiho, Age 17

- Miho Tsumiki as Kazue Shimazaki

- [Ken Mitsuishi](/source/Ken_Mitsuishi) as Hisaki Shimazaki

- Saburo Kitamura as Ishikawa Ward Mayor

- Taeko Yoshida as Makoto Kinjo

- Fumio Haruya as Ear-Cutting Uncle

- Takahito Hosoyamada as Shinichi Kano

- Tomoya Iju as Masashi Shimazaki

- Asaya Shimabukuro as Akira

- Akira Fukuhara

## Background

Medoruma's original short stories were first published in 1997, and translated to [English](/source/English_language) by Kyoko Selden and Alisa Freedman.[4] After the film's release, Medoruma expanded the short stories into a full novel titled *Fuon: The Crying Wind*.[5]

## Release

*Fuon* was theatrically released by SIGLO Ltd. on July 31, 2004, in Japan.[1][2] The film was later released to [DVD](/source/DVD) on August 5, 2005 by Toei Video.[5][6]

## Reception

Writing for *[Variety](/source/Variety_(magazine))*, [Derek Elley](/source/Derek_Elley) called the film "Clumsily scripted,"[7] and said that it "aims for a semi-mystical tone, but is sunk by largely dull performances."[7] He also stated that the "magical touch" Higashi brought to his previous films *[Village of Dreams](/source/Village_of_Dreams)* and *[My Grandpa](/source/My_Grandpa)* is "largely absent" in *Fuon*, and he believed that the film was clearly "constrained by its low budget."[7]

A review for *kamikazeimages.net* stated that "This high-quality Japanese film by a native Okinawan writer allows viewers to get a glimpse of rural life on the island and the influence that the tragic events of WWII still have on Japan's oldest generation."[5]

## Awards and nominations

**27th [Montreal World Film Festival](/source/Montreal_World_Film_Festival)**[3]

- Won: Innovation Award ([Yōichi Higashi](/source/Y%C5%8Dichi_Higashi))[3]

- Nominated: Grand Prix des Amériques (Yōichi Higashi)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-7) [***i***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-8) [***j***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-9) [***k***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-10) [***l***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-11) [***m***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-12) [***n***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-13) [***o***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-14) [***p***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-15) [***q***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-16) [***r***](#cite_ref-Allcinema_1-17) ["Wind Sound"](https://www.allcinema.net/cinema/320314). *allcinema.net*. Retrieved 10 March 2026.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-7) [***i***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-8) [***j***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-9) [***k***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-10) [***l***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-11) [***m***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-12) [***n***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-13) [***o***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-14) [***p***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-15) [***q***](#cite_ref-Kinenote_2-16) ["Wind Sound"](http://www.kinenote.com/sp/public/cinema/detail.aspx?cinema_id=35909). *kinenote.com*. Retrieved 10 March 2026.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Cine_Co_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Cine_Co_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Cine_Co_3-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Cine_Co_3-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Cine_Co_3-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Cine_Co_3-5) ["The Crying Wind"](https://www.cine.co.jp/en/works/fuon/). *cine.co.jp*. Retrieved 10 March 2026.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Japanese_Review_4-0)** "Unfinished Business: The Endless Postwar in Japanese Cinema and Visual Culture". *Review of Japanese Culture and Society*. **21**: 137–172. December 2009.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Kamikaze_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Kamikaze_5-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Kamikaze_5-2) ["Fūon (The Crying Wind)"](https://kamikazeimages.net/films/japanese/fuon/index.htm). *kamikazeimages.net*. Retrieved 10 March 2026.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Allcinema_2_6-0)** ["\[DVD\] Wind Sound FUON"](https://www.allcinema.net/soft/378610). *allcinema.net*. Retrieved 10 March 2026.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Variety_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Variety_7-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Variety_7-2) Elley, Derek (10 September 2004). ["The Crying Wind"](https://variety.com/2004/film/reviews/the-crying-wind-1200531170/). *variety.com*. Retrieved 10 March 2026.

## External links

- [*Fuon*](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0425048/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier))

v t e Films directed by Yōichi Higashi Yasashii Nipponjin (1971) Third Base (1978) No More Easy Life (1979) Shiki Natsuko (1980) Love Letter (1981) Manon (1981) The Rape (1982) Jealousy Game (1982) The Second Love (1983) Wangan Doro (1984) Keshin (1986) Ureshi Hazukashi Monogatari (1988) The River with No Bridge (1992) Village of Dreams (1996) The Crossing (2000) My Grandpa (2003) Fuon: The Crying Wind (2004) Wandering Home (2010) Somebody's Xylophone (2016)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Fuon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuon) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuon?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.