Busan 2025 Review: ALL GREENS, High Schoolers Become Drug Dealers in Goofy Comedy
A bright, bouncy film about coed drug dealers, All Greens makes full use of its narrative contradictions. It employs a tone similar to the Baby Assassins franchise, only without violent stunts. Of the many coming-of-age films at this year's Busan International Film Festival, this stood out for its winning characterizations and splashy direction.
Writer and director Koyama Takashi starts out by focusing in on Boku (Sara Minami), an angry high school outcast in Tōkai, a small village not far from the site of two nuclear power plant accidents. Boku dreams of becoming a skateboard pro, or a rapper, or anything that can get her out of Tōkai.
Sullen and suspicious of everyone, Boku has trouble standing up for herself. Iwakuma (Mizuki Yoshida) is even more withdrawn, ashamed of herself and her job in a bowling alley.
"Milk" (Natsuki Deguchi), on the other hand, is a class favorite. Beautiful and confident, she's admired by teachers and students alike. That makes Boku despise her even more.
Until, that is, Milk loses a finger in a machine shop accident. Suddenly, the two are able to open up with each other—to an extent. Milk won't talk about her divorced mom Toki, a hoarder who is one box of plastic beads away from institutionalization.
Boku has her own secret, like the time she was almost raped by an amateur "beatmaster." Promised studio time with him, she visits his apartment. She sees him slip a roofie in her drink. When he ends up with the wrong glass, Boku waits until he passes out to beat him up and steal his stash of marijuana seeds.
Boku convinces Milk and Iwakuma to form a school "gardening club." With the help of other nerds, they refurbish a rooftop greenhouse, plant their seeds, and nourish the plants until they produce enough product to sell. Then the money rolls in.
Koyama, who also edited All Greens, fleshes out Boku's world nicely, and has a good eye for weird locations. His script, based on Dō Namiki's novel, is filled with off-kilter scenes, like a hit-and-run accident involving a homeless mother, or wannabe rappers gathered by a highway overpass. In the background, radiation is a looming presence.
Whenever All Greens threatens to become too sunny and unrealistic, Koyama will drop in a jarring touch of reality, like older students who rob Boku, or when Toki inexplicably burns her daughter's cache of money. The violence still plays out in a colorful, almost-cartoon environment.
As Milk, Natsuki Deguchi uses her looks for friendship, or to dismember her opponents. It's a clever performance that keeps viewers guessing. Mizuki Yoshida is solid as the trustworthy friend.
Sara Minami as Boku is the real surprise here. Her character perseveres against overwhelming odds, but the actor is more interested in an honest portrayal of a difficult person than in trying to win over viewers. There's a guarded nature to her work that makes us want to learn more about her.
Marred by silly vignettes and the occasional flat joke, All Greens is still more fun that you would expect. I'll be looking out for Koyama's next film, and especially for Sara Minami's work.
The film enjoyed its world premiere in the Vision Asia section of this year's Busan International Film Festival.
