Colibel Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

Intcatinfo A Masterpiece!

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Melanie Bouvet The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

MartinHafer The film begins as a rehearsal is ending. A radio play is to be put on only hours later and everyone is congratulating a housewife for the script--which was a winning entry in a script-writing contest. From all appearances, the final live radio show should be a "cake walk". However, a monkey wrench is thrown into the equation when a very temperamental actress asks for "just a few small changes in the script". Unfortunately, the changes aren't small, as they have a major cascading impact on the script. Plus, the other voice actors are jealous and want changes to be made as well. Soon the original simple tale of a lady who works into a pachinko parlor in Japan is morphed into a tale involving a lawyer and her astronaut boyfriend that it set in gangster-infested Chicago!! And with each "little" change, the original script becomes less and less evident. Additionally, each change seems to set off a cascade of script revisions. Again and again, impossibilities become realities in this wacky script--such as scenes involving the mountains in Chicago (it's actually one of the flattest major cities on Earth) and a boyfriend who has just been named "Donald McDonald"--thanks to inspiration one voice actor who happens to be eating McDonald's food!! The film starts off pretty slowly and is only mildly funny at first--you need to stick with it. Over time, it starts to take off and become seriously funny--mostly thanks to a great ensemble cast and writing that somehow makes the entire cast quite endearing. In particular, the minor supporting characters were great--I particularly loved the cowboy trucker. A truly original film that is sure to please anyone who has a sense of humor. Good stuff.

ronsayles This is the greatest movie about radio that I have ever had the pleasure of watching. It is the story of what can and does happen when changes are made to the script just before air time and while on the air. How the story gets wildly out of control and how sound effects are created, on the spot, by an ex-sound effects man who is now the security guard for the radio station. If you like radio as it once was, you will like this movie. It is a 1988 release with English subtitles, but don't let the fact that it has subtitles scare you away. They are in yellow and easy to read. As an added bonus one of the stars is Watanabe Ken who was nominated for a best supporting acting award for the movie "The Last Samurai."

Lee Eisenberg Are one of those people who believes that Japan can only make movies about the Yakuza, or such topics? Then look no further than "Rajio no jikan" (called "Welcome Back, Mr. McDonald" in English)! A radio station in Tokyo is broadcasting a love story. It goes smoothly at first, but then they keep rewriting it. From there, their broadcast gets progressively crazier and crazier.Boy! How they came up with that stuff is beyond me, but they did it. The English title comes from...well, I don't want to spoil that scene. The point is that you gotta see this movie if you can find it anywhere. It hearkens back to movies like "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" and "The Russians are Coming, The Russians are Coming", with the way that something seemingly small branches out into total lunacy. Absolutely hilarious.

altea Imagine being a desperate house-wife in Japan falling in love with a man who doesn't have a clue that you are in love with him. So how do you transmit your feelings as a women in modern day suppressed Japan? Your solution: writing a radioplay mentioning your feelings and love for him. You are in luck because a radio-station is willing to broadcast your play. Mission accomplished? During the course of the broadcast of your play, one of the radio-actors has the bright idea that he has to improvise on his role. Outcome: the whole story has to be rewritten at will by the actors, director, producers, sponsors of the show...because of the continuity. Are you going to defend your script at all costs? I had a great night at the radiostation. The actors are wonderful and hilarious. The direction is first class. A must see movie for everyone who loves world cinema and is looking for a different kind of movie than normal US fare.