It¡¯s the movie event of the summer: A spectacle in which our protagonist journeys to mysterious islands, encountering monsters and sirens, and depends on companions to help navigate a hostile world.
No, it¡¯s not ¡°The Odyssey.¡± This is ¡°Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island,¡± the most anticipated film this year in Japan, the world¡¯s third-largest box office. It grossed ?2.24 billion ($13.7 million) in its opening weekend, one of the strongest Japanese openings of recent years. And with ¡°Chiikawa¡± taking over most movie screens during the school summer vacation period, Christopher Nolan¡¯s epic doesn¡¯t even open here until mid-September.
That¡¯s a common event in a market that marches to the beat of its own drum. Foreigners in Japan are frequently frustrated when Hollywood hits open later than in other countries, but the reality is that the number of screens is finite, domestic movies dominate, and Hollywood must work to their schedules, not the other way around. The five highest-grossing hits in 2025 were all Japan-made, a situation that is no longer unusual.
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