If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

I'm not really clued up on whether the Japanese are so extreme as to put 6 year olds and their families through rigorous examinations and IQ tests before allowing them to enter a better than average elementary school. However if they are then this film parodies this and at the same time deals with the midlife crises of the father. It also looks at role reversal in the home - father becomes the homemaker and mother goes out selling tombstones. There is a scene where the little girl gets slapped (not shown but heard) by her mother for not wanting to greet their guests and that may not be entirely nice for young children to see but overall this film is very sweet and at the same time worth watching - especially for the Hallmark Channel type audience. Please do not expect Zatoichi or Kill Bill with this film, if you do, you will find it boring. Recommended for older children and middle aged viewers.

OK the Japanese society may put a lot of emphasis on their children's future, hence will do anything to ensure that their children will succeed. This movie is supposed to be funny & satirical, but I do not get the humour at all. It was such an incredible bore, I was hoping the film to finish, and when it did, I hoped it gave me a more decent ending.