52: The Munenori Kawasaki Movie (川崎宗則 52)

Approaching the charm of the real face of Munenori Kawasaki! 川崎宗則選手の素顔の魅力にせまる！

By Minor Leaguer Apr 21, 2013, 10:10am EDT

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Munenori Kawasaki. The Japanese name for Bluebird Banter is 青い鳥冗談.

When 42, the biopic about Jackie Robinson, the first black position player to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers, debuted last weekend, it topped all movies in the United States and Canada, collecting a cool $27.5 million. With all the hype surrounding the Toronto Blue Jays' new shortstop, how much can Canadian cinemas make by screening 52, the biopic about Munenori Kawasaki, the first Japanese position player to play for the Toronto Blue Jays?

Let's read the official description of the movie:

福岡ソフトバンクホークスに所属し、WBCでは"王ジャパン"のレギュラーとして、優勝に貢献！そして北京オリンピック、不動のレギュラーとして星野ジャパンを支える川崎宗則選手の素顔の魅力にせまる！福岡ソフトバンクホークス承認DVD、「川崎宗則52」発売！！

Google translated:

Belongs to the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks, as a regular of "Japan King" in WBC, contributing to victory! And I Approaching the charm of the real face of Munenori Kawasaki players that support Hoshino Japan as regular Beijing Olympics, immovable! Fukuoka Softbank Hawks approval DVD, "Munenori Kawasaki 52" release! !

And then watch the trailer from TFC-DVD:

Look at what the movie offers!

Kawasaki speaking Japanese
A Kawasaki topless photoshoot! (fierce)
Photos of Kawasaki growing up! (and the fact that he was born on June 3, 1981)
Kawasaki laughing! (and the fact that he is a Pisces)
Kawasaki breaking in a new glove! (and the fact that he has O-type blood, I think)
Kawasaki talking to throngs of Japanese reporters!

And other things in Japanese that I don't understand! There has to be some readers who can help translate that clip.

Unfortunately, the DVD of the movie is currently out of stock over at Amazon Japan, and the only reason I could think of for that is that it just sold so well Japan ran out of DVD disks. But you can get yourself a second-hand copy (and then lend me it) for just 810 yen ($8.35)!

Even if you don't find the DVD, you can get a good dose of Kawasakiness by visiting his official website (which hasn't been updated since 2011). They have a great number of photos of him doing various things:

As a kid: karate competition, drum playing, flag bearing, pitching, batting right handed, and batting left handed.
As a grown-up kid: dancing in a bathrobe, celebrating his birthday (June 3! write it down!), eating something, working out, drinking Korean soju, golfing, Asian posing, sitting in a hospital wheelchair, his awesome autograph, and more...

What a guy. He's already made his mark in Toronto and he's only been with the club for a week. But he was just what the Blue Jays fanbase needed: a little ray of sunshine during a disappointing start for Toronto's team. Fans are already chanting his name, and bowing to him, while others, like James G (@james_in_to), are already getting Kawasaki jerseys, and Sportsnet showed a bunch of fans who made their own Kawasaki t-shirts! I hope that someone's already filming the sequel 66... TFSML?