Umi e, See You

Umi e, See You (Japanese: 海へ 〜See you〜, Hepburn: Umi e 〜See you〜; lit. To the Sea 〜See you〜) is a 1988 Japanese auto racing epic film directed by Koreyoshi Kurahara and written by Sō Kuramoto. It is based on the story Suna no bôkensha (lit. Adventurers of the Sand) by José Giovanni (credited onscreen as Joze Jovanni).^[1] The plot revolves around the Paris-Dakar Rally, an off-road endurance race spanning thousands of miles and multiple continents. It follows the lives, loves and losses of the competitors of Japan's Team DANKAI during the 1988 competition. Umi e, See You was theatrically released by Toho on May 18, 1988, and stars a multi-national cast with Ken Takakura in the lead role, alongside Junko Sakurada, Philippe Leroy, Nenji Kobayashi and Ayumi Ishida.^[1]

This production was Sō Kuramoto's final feature film screenwriting credit for 36 years until the release of Silence of the Sea in 2024.^[2]

With the Paris-Dakar Rally fast approaching, SurfBreak, the sponsor of Mitsubishi's Team DANKAI, adds popular celebrity Ryuichi Yoshii (Goro Ohashi) to their roster for publicity. Mizuki (Nenji Kobayashi), DANKAI's team leader, recognizes the strain this puts on his team, in addition to their general dysfunction and baggage. He also knows it is necessary to have a support vehicle (a 1985 Mercedes-Benz 2628 NG camion) running alongside the team's Pajero rally car. Thus Mizuki seeks the help of legendary mechanic and driver Eiji Honma (Ken Takakura). Honma had retired years prior due to the deaths of multiple friends in his dangerous profession. However, Mizuki persuades Honma to come out of retirement one last time and help DANKAI win the race.

On January 1, 1988, the rally cars leave Paris en route to Dakar, the capital city of Senegal located on the Cap-Vert peninsula. Honma soon discovers from his old friend and fellow participant Toto Luciano (Philippe Leroy) that Honma's ex-wife Kei (Ayumi Ishida) is also participating in the rally, alongside her current husband, the bullfighter Antonio Vázquez (Tomas Arana). In addition, Honma's support truck comes to include stowaway passenger Yuko Takei (Junko Sakurada), Yoshii's pop star girlfriend who had followed him from Japan in an attempt to salvage their relationship. Eiji keeps her hidden in the truck during the day and his tent at night, as she does not have a passport.

Over the course of the race, the relationship between the selfish Yoshii and DANKAI begins to sour. While navigating the Sahara Desert, tensions come to a head. A fight breaks out, but Honma mediates the dispute and gets the team back in the race. In this moment, Yuko reveals her presence to Yoshii, but Yoshii yells at her, saying he does not want her there. Later, Yoshii's car breaks down. Mizuki sacrifices parts from his vehicle, forfeiting his role in the race, in order to give Yoshii a chance to finish. The other team members look to Eiji as de facto leader in Mizuki's absence. Meanwhile, Eiji tells Yuko that she cannot continue riding with him. Yuko reluctantly agrees. Eiji asks Toto to send her ahead to Dakar to await their arrival.

Through multiple trials and tribulations, including wrong turns, rough terrain and a sandstorm, Yoshii and the team learn to trust each other, and DANKAI finishes the race. Upon arrival, Yuko greets Yoshii, and Yoshii embraces her. However, Kei and Antonio's car suffers an accident in the West African desert. Eiji arrives to provide assistance, but before he can pull them out, their vehicle explodes, and both perish. Though he has completed the rally, Honma once again becomes a mourner. He erects a cross in the desert using the remains of their vehicle. Toto looks on as Eiji hangs a necklace on the cross, the same necklace Kei had given him years earlier.

Umi e is similar to an earlier Kurahara production, Safari 5000 (1969), which was also an epic-length film about a rally raid in Africa (specifically, the Safari Rally). It was shot in multiple countries, including Japan, Finland, Italy, France, Spain, Senegal and various locations in North Africa. Extensive filming took place on location at the actual Paris-Dakar Rally sites. Cinematographers Tsuguzo Matsumae, Kikumatsu Sôda and Tatsuo Mori assisted with on-location shooting.

Actor and musician Ryudo Uzaki co-starred in the film and also co-composed its score with Shûichi Chino.^[1] The film's theme song is "Rose Des Vents" (lit. "The Rose of the Wind") by Pierre Barouh. In addition, the film features the track "Donde Esta Corazon" by Luis Martinez Serrano. The soundtrack was released by Meldac in June 1988.^[5]

Multiple trucks, cars and motorcycles are featured in the film, including several custom-built off-road vehicles, SUVs and sports cars. Featured brands include BMW, Honda, Kawasaki, Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Peugeot, Saab, Suzuki and Toyota, among others:

Editor Akira Suzuki won the 12th Japan Academy Award for Best Editing for his work on Umi e and four other films in 1988: The Silk Road, Kamu onna (also known as Love Bites Back), Ikidomari no Banka: Break Out and A Taxing Woman's Return.^[13]

Due to the film's running time of 2 hours and 54 minutes, it was released on VHS as a two-volume set. The film was later released on DVD.

• Umi e, See You at IMDb