Love Exposure

This nearly four-hour long movie tells an ultimate pure love story based on real events. Kotaro Kadota grew up in a devout Christian family. His mother passed away early, and he lived a peaceful yet happy life with his priest father Tetsu. Kotaro dreamed of one day meeting his ideal woman, Maria, who would resemble his mother in demeanor. One day, the alluring and free-spirited Kaoru disrupts their lives. Despite being a member of the clergy, Tetsu becomes deeply infatuated with Kaoru. After Kaoru suddenly leaves, Tetsu changes drastically, becoming an unreasonable old man who demands daily confessions from his son. Kotaro can only make up random things to get by, but one confession is true: he had once seen a girl's skirt bottom. Upon hearing this, Tetsu becomes furious, calling his son a pervert. However, Kotaro becomes even more obsessed with this habit. On a bet with his friends, Kotaro loses and is forced to dress as a woman and flirt with girls on the street. He meets Yoko, who is being harassed by a group of young hoodlums. Kotaro falls in love with Yoko at first sight, for she is exactly the Maria lady he has been longing for. And Yoko also falls for Kotaro's disguised mysterious girl, Sacho Li. Later, Tetsu reunites with Kaoru, they get married, and the child Kaoru brings along turns out to be Yoko. From then on, Kotaro's life descends into chaos. Yoko is devoted to Sacho Li but detests Kotaro. She is sweet to Kotaro when he is dressed as a woman but cold and distant to him as her brother. Unable to bear it, Kotaro vents his frustration. Meanwhile, a mysterious new religious group called Zero Church begins to gain popularity, with an increasing number of followers. For unknown reasons, the patriarch of Zero Church, Furutachi, approaches Kotaro and his family. Furutachi also reveals Kotaro's peculiar habits to Yoko, causing her to distance herself from him even more. Then, Tetsu and Kaoru seem to have been brainwashed, losing trust in Kotaro. Unable to endure, Kotaro runs away from home. After some time, he returns to find his parents and sister missing. This must be the doing of Furutachi and Zero Church. Kotaro embarks on his own battle.