a Satoshi Nakagawa film
Two men, Sato, ex-Yakuza who has known nothing
but a life of crime and Terry, who has known
nothing but the view from his hospital window
come together through a chance of fate and
affect each others lives in ways they could
never imagine.
Sato wishes to leave behind his life of crime
and violence so he steals money from the
Japanese mafia and heads west to do just that.
He soon finds himself on the run from his former
partners who have been given one command, kill
Sato. After a brief run-in with them, Sato ends
up in a hospital, lying next to Terry, a friendless
young man who has spent his entire life in a
hospital bed. Terry longs for the outside world,
to know if the ocean water tastes salty, to feel
the wind in his hair, to know the love of a woman.
The two opposites soon become friends, bonding
over Sato's tales of the magical city, New York.
Upon learning Terry has barely a month to live,
Sato makes the decision to break Terry out of
his confines and go "to East."
While on their journey, Terry learns of emotions
he never knew he had, including ones brought out
by the beautiful young hitchhiker, Ellen, all
the while being closely followed by a past Sato
can't seem to shake.
Written and artfully directed by Satoshi Nakagawa,
"to East" is a story of redemption, fulfilling
dreams, and life on your own terms.