I WANT TO DESTROY AMERICA
2006, 66 min
A touching documentary about the singular career of Hisao Shinagawa, a Japanese street musician who has refused to give up on his elusive dream of success and stardom, regardless of personal cost and the solitary reality of his life. For over 40 years, he has cast himself as the Japanese Bob Dylan. Moving from Tokyo to America in 1974, following in the footsteps of his hero Woody Guthrie, he befriended Johnny Cash and Townes Van Zandt after hitchhiking to Nashville. Now at 60, he plays his music on the streets of Los Angeles while living in near poverty, still hoping to find an audience in a manner that is admirable, bittersweet, and, ultimately, heartbreaking.
NEWS
I Want To Destroy America is having 2 screenings the last weekend of July, 2010 at Gallery Septima in Tachikawa, Tokyo! Screening details below:
July 31, 2010 at 3:20pm & August 1, 2010 at 4:20pm
07.22.10
Johnny Knoxville recently did a video interview with Hisao Shinagawa for jackassworld.com's 'One bourbon, One scotch, and One beer.'
Knoxville gave Hisao some much needed attention, as well as a nice plug for I Want To Destroy America.
12.20.08
FILM Festivals & Screenings:
Gallery Septima, Tachikawa, Tokyo Japan
07.31 & 08.01.2010
12.08 & 12.09.2006 Tipton Hall
Atlanta Underground Film Festival
08.23.2006 Cinefest
Reviews:
"The story of this self-proclaimed 'Japanese Bob Dylan' is an engaging exploration of one man’s desire to make peace with his past while struggling to cope with his uncertain future."
—Rob DeWalt, The New Mexican
"Though Shinagawa would befriend the likes of Johnny Cash and Townes Van Zandt after hitchhiking to Nashville, his journey ultimately led him to the unforgiving streets of Los Angeles. There, Shinagawa would work tirelessly to find an audience who would truly appreciate his powerful but polarizing style of music."
—Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
"I Want To Destroy America isn't as incendiary as the title,...a bizarre, inspiring and disturbing trip."
"An interesting portrait of an outsider artist who has lead an amazing life. Hisao Shinagawa is strange, passionate, and one of those people who lives life on his own offbeat terms."
—John Wallis, DVD Talk
"With the skillful use of archival footage, collage, and Hisao's own music to address concerns of mortality, memory, and loss, this touching examination of an aging man taking stock of his past is handled deftly as Hisao's life moves from the atomic cityscape of post-World War II Hiroshima to the modern streets of Los Angeles."
—Barnes & Noble, Editorial Staff Review
"This documentary, which was filmed during Shinagawa's 60th year on the planet, tells his moving tale, which has seen him doggedly clinging to his dreams of success despite failing to make inroads in the music industry."
"One of the most intimate and interesting documentaries I have seen in a long time."
—Robert L. Hughes, Well-Executed Buffet
