"The Blue Light" (Ao no Honoo) is a 2003 Japanese film based on the novel by Yusuke Kishi, which also had a manga and stage play reproduction. The film adaptation attracted much attention as it was directed by theatrical master Yukio Ninagawa. It was Ninagawa's first film in 19 years. Executive producer Tsuguhiko Kadokawa asked Ninagawa to direct, and Ninagawa initially refused, but Kadokawa explained, "This work is the Japanese version of 'Plein Soleil'," so Ninagawa agreed. The novel features themes that were not well known at the time of its release, such as "(adoptive) patricide," "the perfect crime of a 17-year-old," "the Internet," "bishoujo games," and "road racers."

Main Characters
Kushimori Shuichi
Played by Ninomiya Kazunari (Arashi)
The protagonist of the story. A 17-year-old honor student in his second year at Yuigahama High School. A ghost member of the art club, he primarily paints oil paintings. He is kind-hearted and sensitive, devoted to his family, but will stop at nothing to protect them. In order to restore peace to his home, he carefully plans Sone's murder and carries out the perfect crime. Although underage, he has a drinking habit, but believes that moderate drinking is fine. He has a wide range of hobbies, including building his own computers. His daily routine is riding his road racer to school (in the movie, he corrects his classmates whenever they say "bicycle"). His hobby is recording his current feelings and thoughts on a tape recorder (he describes it as "putting pain into words"). He uses his garage as his room. His favorite spot seems to be the large, empty aquarium in his room, and he is seen lying in it several times throughout the story. He also works part-time at a convenience store during the night shift.

Noriko Fukuhara
Played by Aya Matsuura
Shuichi's classmate. She shares a special bond with him. She was in the same class as Shuichi in middle school, but transferred schools due to family circumstances. She later transferred to Yuigahama High School. She is a member of the art club and often paints oil paintings. She has a pet dog, though the exact breed is unknown. She tells Shuichi, "When I write down all the things I like in a notebook, it calms my mind." In the film, she is a quiet girl, but in the original story, she is strong-willed. She does not appear in the manga. Also, the doodles on the back of Shuichi's paintings differ between the film and the original manga. Matsuura, who played Noriko, won the Best New Actress Award at the 18th Takasaki Film Festival for her performance.

Shuichi's Family, etc.
Tomoko Kushimori
Played by Kumiko Akiyoshi
Shuichi's mother. Her previous husband (Shuichi's biological father) died in an accident. Shuichi scolds her for not trying to kick Sone out of the house, who has been staying there for about 10 days. She also can't refuse Sone's requests for alcohol and money. During the day, she works at an interior design shop owned by an acquaintance.

Haruka Kushimori
Played by Suzuki Anne (special appearance)
Shuichi's younger sister. A second-year junior high school student and a member of the track and field club. She is Sone's stepdaughter, and even after Tomoko and Sone divorced, she remains Sone's daughter on paper, but Haruka herself is unaware of this. She has a cheerful personality and spends her time innocently when Sone is not around. Despite their petty arguments, they care about each other and are very close.

Takashi Sone
Played by Yamamoto Kansai
He is the one who takes away the peaceful atmosphere from the Kushimori household. Tomoko's ex-husband, he forcibly moved into the Kushimori household and behaves arrogantly. He is not related to Shuichi by blood. He is always intimidating and usually quiet, but if something displeases him, he will shout and become violent. He likes shochu. According to Kano, he started dating Tomoko after Shuichi's father passed away, and on the surface he appeared to be a nice, gentle person. However, after remarrying, he began to show a sloppy personality and gradually became violent towards Tomoko and Shuichi.
When Shuichi was young, he would become violent over trivial matters, instilling in him an intense hatred.

Detective Eiji Yamamoto
Played by Nakamura Baijaku II

Shuichi's classmates (Class 2-A)
Takuya Ishioka
Played by Yosuke Kawamura
Shuichi's childhood friend. He often skips school and wanders around, riding his motorcycle and other activities. Unlike his smart older brother, he is neglected by his family and feels like an outsider. After that, he apparently began hitting his family, which led them to avoid him. In the story, he appears to be so upset that he is about to do something, and Shuichi, worried about him, takes away the knife he was carrying. He discovered Shuichi's crime and blackmailed him, but Shuichi killed him to silence him, pretending to act in self-defense. In the original story, his final words were "You..." and "Why...?", but in the film, he calls out Shuichi's name.

Oikawa Shinsuke
Played by Miyata Yukiteru
Shuichi's friend. Nicknamed Gates. His family owns a liquor store, and he secretly steals the liquor they sell and secretly sells it to Shuichi to earn some extra cash.

Daimon Tsuyoshi
Played by Kimura Miyabi
Shuichi's friend. He wears glasses. He is nosy and seems to be curious about Shuichi's expressions and behavior, so he often asks him questions. He is not particularly good at drawing, and in the film, when Shuichi sees a cloud he has painted as a landscape painting, he asks him, "Why are you drawing Doraemon?" In the original story, his nickname is "The Invincible Daimon." This comes from the fact that he is a kind person and doesn't make enemies. In the film, his nickname is "Daimon."Since Noriko does not appear in the manga, some of Noriko's scenes are replaced by Daimon.

Teachers at Yuigahama High School
Inukai
Played by: Yoshimasa Kondo
Shuichi's homeroom teacher at Yuigahama High School.

Elementary/Junior High
Played by: Satoshi Watanabe
While talking to Shuichi, who is frustrated by the changes in his daily life, Inukai retorts, leading to an argument.

Art Teacher
Played by: Yuki Nakayama
A young male teacher. He is not a very enthusiastic teacher. After checking student attendance at the start of class, he listens to music at full volume on headphones and immerses himself in drawing his own pictures.

Other People Involved with Shuichi
Masashi Kano
Played by: Naomasa Rokuhei
A lawyer at a law firm. A lawyer who was previously hired by Tomoko to handle her divorce from Sone. Later, he also consults Shuichi about Sone.

The Man with the Private Mailbox
Played by Naoto Takenaka (special appearance)
The person in charge of the private mailbox. mHe accepts Shuichi's mail without knowing that he is using the alias "Matsuoka Shiro" and a slight disguise. His appearance differs between the original and the film.

Shintaro Kanzaki
Played by Toshiaki Karasawa (special appearance)
A part-time colleague of Shuichi at the convenience store where he works.

• LOCATIONS ETC
  Fujisawa City
  Kugenuma - The place where the protagonist is said to live.
  Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum - One of the filming locations. The long escalator is iconic. Although it is a very far distance for a filming location, Ninagawa was determined to use this escalator.
  Road Racer - The protagonist uses it frequently and plays an important role. It was not widely known at the time the novel was published. Miyata Industries cooperated in this work, and their road racing team, the Miyata Subaru Racing Team (Team Miyata), appears in the film.
• Director: Yukio Ninagawa
• Screenplay: Yukio Ninagawa, Takuya Miyawaki
• Original Story: Yusuke Kishi's "Blue Flame" (Kadokawa Bunko)
• Music: Hideki Togi
• Steadicam: Akira Sakamoto
• Road Racer Training: Miyata Kogyo (Saburo Fukuda, Osamu Kurimura)
• Special Makeup: Makeup Dimensions (Etsuko Egawa, Fumihiro Kanda)
• Skills: Tatsumi Nikamoto
• Car Stunts: Active 21
• Developing: Tokyo Development Studio
• Studio: Nikkatsu Studios
• Producers: Yoshikazu Tsubaki, Ken Doso
• Planning: Shinya Egawa
• Production: "Blue Flame" Production Committee (Kadokawa Shoten, Asmik Ace, J Storm, Toho, Hakuhodo, Toshiba, Up-Front Group)