For anyone who's ever watched the Olympic games with obsessive fascination, Ski Jumping Pairs is for you. The Japanese mockumentary is a laugh-out-loud funny look at the sport Ski Jumping Pairs, which puts two ski jumpers on one set of skis for a much more exciting variation on the popular Winter Games competition. Directorial team Masaki Kobayashi and Riichiro Mashima create a plausible, if absurd setup for the evolution of ski jumping pairs from one man's dream to an international phenomenon. My only complaint was some slightly awkward transitions between the live action scenes and CGI used during the ski jumps, but even this ads to the comical nature of the film once you get used to it. I spoke with director Riichiro Mashima about the film shortly before it showed at SIFF, with the help of a translator. The interview here is uncut, including both English and Japanese conversation.
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