Gyu-chan...
- It's your birthday. - Huh?
Damn... I'm finally 80 years old.
- You wearing those? - No, these are for you!
Oh. What a surprising birthday present.
Look at these ducks.
Quack, quack.
Where are the candles?
We don't have 80 candles.
- We only have a "three." - Three is fine.
You have to blow it out.
You have cake all over your face.
I really don't care!
I don't listen to you.
That's how I... keep young.
It's nothing to do with you turning 80. You've never listened.
So isn't it about time you listened?
Here you go. Let's go.
We've got water dripping into our bedroom from the third floor.
I'll bring it up to here.
Just a minute.
All right.
It's like Niagara Falls.
OK. Let's go.
You know we haven't paid this month's rent? Landlord sent us a bill.
And we need to pay utilities or they will shut them off.
How much do we need?
Too scary to think about...
$1,000.
The rent plus $1,000. That would be enough for a while.
OK. We're here. Let's go.
OK, go ahead.
- You don't have to hold it. - No, no, we have to do it together.
Remove the one underneath. Pull more. A little more.
I'm putting everything into my next show.
Maybe I can sell. I have to sell.
This cardboard motorcycle is my pride.
My pride and a chance... to show everyone.
With this show, my reputation is going to go like:
Bam!
- The headlight is too big. - The headlight?
- Maybe we should redo it. - Too big? It's too late.
You can't tell what it is.
I guess after painting, it will look more like something.
Yeah.
I'm not his assistant.
It's better I make mine... my work.
But sometimes I help
because it's an emergency.
Because I'm husband!
You are so pitiful.
Be careful.
Don't get mugged on the way home.
I'm sure you can tell Noriko doesn't really want to help.
She is just an assistant.
The average one has to support the genius.
That's what I think.
It's done.
Gyu-chan! Dinner is ready.
This red snapper is delicious.
But it's so cheap.
My cooking is expensive.
Yeah.
This would cost ten times more in a restaurant.
It's like you get to eat in an expensive restaurant every day.
What's the problem?
I've spent a lot of time on this meal
and the way you gobble it up is so gross.
That's why I hate eating together.
I made it all pretty
but you quickly make a big mess.
This soup is excellent.
Do you know the correct way to eat a cherry tomato?
Tomato?
Look what happens when you do it the wrong way.
OK, didn't come out this time.
What the hell are you doing?
You should just throw it up and catch it.
- You should try. - I can't.
OK, I'll give it a go.
Go ahead.
There's no way you can do it.
I almost had it.
I'm hopeless.
I give up.
You did it.
Remember in Spielberg's movie?
I think it was Raiders of the Lost Ark...
I don't remember.
There's a scene where they poison food like this and someone's about to eat it.
But right then, this monkey grabs it and eats it and it dies.
But the Spielberg film we saw the other day was horrible.
You mean the last Indiana Jones?
Yeah. It sucked.
Are you sure it was Spielberg?
Yeah, he's done. He's too old.
I love Jaws. Jaws was the best.
You always say the first work is the best.
Yeah. Young Spielberg.
But you could say the same for artists, their first work is always the best.
Yeah, I guess.
It's the later work where things get tough.
So if that's the case, there is no hope.
Why continue?
Does it fit?
Yeah, it does. It does.
No, it won't fit.
- What's wrong? - It's bent there.
OK, there it goes.
I got it. Nut, nut, nut.
Gyu-chan, hold the other side.
I need a nut!
What do you think of my opening?
It hasn't even started yet.
I'm nervous.
- Like, "Will they sell?" - You don't sell at an opening.
You never know.
I'm tired.
- Why - Huh?
- I'm tired from preparing for today. - I'm not tired at all.
Of course, this is your event.
It's not my show, so I just get frustrated.
Come on, give me a break.
This is my main work.
I've been doing this for such a long time. I usually start off with an image.
Oh, I see.
So this is eventually what I came up with.
Yeah. I close my eyes and hit right to left.
Just one minute. That's all.
- In one minute? - No, no. Two and a half minutes.
When I was young I was obsessed by my ideals
and art was my first priority.
Art was Ushio's priority too.
When it came to that, we completely agreed.
I'd never known anyone in my life who was so open-hearted.
I began to love him.
I was so filled with inspiration.
I was never worried about the future.
Hello?
Hi, Ethan.
I'm fine. I'm fine. Ethan, what's up?
Listen, I have small, very, very charming, two motorcycles for you.
Hold on, please. Noriko is coming...
Noriko!
It's Ethan.
Gyu-chan...
Alexandra from the Guggenheim Museum wants to see a boxing painting.
She wants to come to your studio tomorrow.
Let's pull these out.
I'm excited to show these to Alexandra.
She has always liked your work.
Let's look around for bigger ones.
OK.
Is there anything up there?
I see a few dirty rolls, but I don't think we want those.
- We have so much stuff. - This isn't a boxing painting, is it?
Look, this looks like the right size.
Noriko, let me take away whatever's on top.
- I can slide it out. - Can you?
- Be careful not to cut into the canvas. - I know.
Oh!
Nice!
Look, there is nice blue.
- This is beautiful... - This will definitely sell.
This should be good for tomorrow.
Thank you.
If it sells, I take the profit.
So you've never seen me do a boxing painting, right?
Only on film.
So today you can see it live.
Can you believe? Ushio cannot drink anymore.
That's how he regained his health.
It's very strange.
All of a sudden, one day
three and a half years ago...
...he couldn't breathe.
And since then, it's kind of allergy.
He cannot drink alcohol.
If a doctor finds such a thing,
all the alcoholics can be saved in this world.
I've got a lot of these.
They're cheap.
You're welcome.
OK, title is "Poppy Field".
This one is historical.
Because this one, he did it at Potsdam University,
at the opening.
But it's only one event.
But this one was for a university,
and traveled several universities.
Actually, that one is no good because actually, it doesn't belong to us.
Because his friend...
Ushio gave him that one.
And he promised us, he won't sell it.
Actually...
Ushio was kind of drunk, so he promised it to him.
But I thought, you know,
the other one, is more easy.
It was only six months after I met Ushio when I got pregnant.
Our baby was born, and Ushio was an alcoholic.
Ushio and I had many fights caused by his drinking.
With no time to do my artwork,
I lost my joy of painting.
I should've married a guy who made a secure living
and would take responsibility for what he did.
Oh, hello, son. Welcome.
Noriko, I can't find the sweet red bean jelly.
I don't know about it. You put it on the chair, right?
Ah, it fell down here.
Found it! Youkan!
Alex, do you want some Youkan?
- Alex, you are already drunk. - No, not at all.
You smell.
Yeah, you smell.
I can give you water.
What are you looking for?
No, no, no.
You've had enough.
No, no, no...
That's too much.
Why can't you just drink water?
- Is that the expensive wine? - It's not especially expensive but...
- It's $13. - Oh, $13.
But I can't enjoy drinking together because he guzzles it up like water.
- Like water. - Like water.
He was getting better. So I was giving him one glass a day.
He was doing better...
We have to take all the alcohol with us.
That's what we have to do.
Or else Alex will hunt them down.
This happened because you spoiled him. I want you to take responsibility.
He will never refuse a drink if you offer. So you never give one to him.
He'll say anything to get a drink.
I did the best I could to raise my child.
Because he came from a poor family with an alcoholic parent,
he had a strong inferiority complex.
When I see Alex to school,
he tells me to go home a block before we reach the bus stop.
He is ashamed of you.
Alex doesn't want you coming along.
I felt guilty that I didn't give my son a proper environment to grow up in
with drunk adults hanging around him all the time.
Why don't you go dance alone?
Let me tell you something...
Did Alex go out, Noriko?
He got so drunk that he's still sleeping.
Why is it always like this with you?
They invited me. I have to go.
Why would you even consider going to Japan when we can't pay our rent?
Well, we need money from somewhere.
I'm going to take some work to sell.
Every time you go, you come back and say it didn't sell.
You say, "Sorry, it didn't sell."
Someone there wants to buy a sculpture for $3,000.
That's too cheap.
Well, it's something.
Oh, yeah. Here we go.
Pokemon motorcycle. It's a little dusty.
Look, Noriko.
You have to get at least $10,000 for this work.
No... don't do it. It won't fit!
It doesn't fit.
Obviously!
When Ushio is gone,
suddenly the air clears and it gets very quiet.
Ushio had always been my teacher.
But I always felt inferior to him.
Ushio's voice was always in my head.
I was just following him.
According to Virginia Woolf,
female artists need a little money
and a room of their own in order to succeed.
I feel for the first time that Cutie is completely my own work.
Glad you are here.
I get to show a friend my new work.
We just had our 39th anniversary.
So you must have a lot of stories to tell.
Of course.
This will be the last chapter.
This is just a rough idea on a sketch book.
Cutie pulls Bullie's mouth and ears
and she pins him down.
Looking at angry Cutie is interesting, but...
...I prefer her being happy.
But it won't be true if it has a happy ending.
I hate Hollywood-style happy ending.
Of course, I understand that!
It's just nice to have some happy moments.
Yes, sometimes.
After all...
Otherwise I can't emphasize the roughness.
Yes, because of the roughness, I feel "Cutie is so sweet!" in another moment.
She doesn't want to be put into a mold.
No, she doesn't.
All of these together would be great for a gallery.
- So you've made about 20 pieces? - Yes, about that.
Hi, Alex! Hi.
OK, so 20 altogether?
Let's see. One, two, three...
This one I did... This is kind of more earlier work.
This is another one.
It's kind of self-portrait-like.
I like this a lot.
I like this one, too.
Ushio.
You got here so fast!
Wow, you brought this all the way! Amazing.
Wait, don't rush.
You did a good job carrying this by subway.
Sure! I saved $50.
- You should have called me from there. - There's no phone.
- You should've called from a payphone. - I didn't have a quarter.
Oh, you didn't have a quarter...
For you.
How much? Count it.
There should be a lot.
There's not that much here...
It's $3,600!
I thought that's about it.
Isn't that great?
- Noriko, let's open this now. - OK.
There's no reason to get naked.
Well, it's so hot here.
I found some of my old clothes in Japan.
This one...and this one...
Let me pay my respects.
I came back home safely.
Thank you so much.
Please take care of me next time again.
- Hey, why don't you count money? - Not now...
Now!
- Now, Mom! - Wait.
- I brought money back. - You change as you brought money.
You have to smell the money. Crisp bills!
These are $100 bills.
You do it like this way...
It's difficult. Bankers are good at this.
Give it to me. I've been doing this since I was child.
Oh, really? All right, you count it! Smell it first.
We have $3,500? Good.
- See, I brought it back - You did what you're supposed to do.
- Ah! Fish, fish, Noriko! - Yeah?
- Big one! - I'm shooting now.
Here we go!
No worries, I'm shooting.
- See! - Amazing!
Move... come here. Gently.
Now go over there. Oh! That's good, good!
Turn around.
Oh... It's romantic.
Noriko, what are you doing?
Shuhei from the gallery is coming over soon.
He seems to have only you in mind for a show...
I want to remind him there is another artist in this house.
Gyu-chan, there's the telephone.
It's him. Hi, Shuhei.
Where are you?
Yes, I'll come down to get you.
OK. I'm on my way.
Ready?
Come on in.
Wow, this is spectacular.
- Is this new? - Brand new. He made it last week.
Is this the one I saw the other day?
Yes. This big one.
Here you see a fusion of Japanese Oiran style and strawberry ice cream.
This is impressive.
And then this.
A fight between a rabbit and a frog.
My place is messy. It deserves to be in your beautiful gallery.
Yeah, it'd be nice to do a show with you at my gallery.
Shuhei, I have my work in the other space. Would you take a look?
You can't make a decision just by looking at his work.
This way please. This is my studio.
First the series was entitled Child-Raising Hell.
But later it changed to Ushio-Raising Hell.
This series is really good.
Noriko, these are all great works.
- Which ones? - These here.
- My work? Or Noriko's? - Both!
For this exhibition, Ushio's art will be in my main room.
But I would also like to show your work at the same time.
- I'll be visiting your gallery soon. - Yes, I look forward to it.
I would like to come to see the space.
- Take care. Goodbye. - Goodbye.
So people will come this way... and there, right in the middle.
I see, so this is the main thing. Jumps out at you.
Right. And there will be paintings too, right?
- Yeah. - Where should we put paintings?
All these walls are open.
I'm working on three huge ones now. We'll cover the walls with them.
I don't want a title that's too general, like "Two... Two Artists" or something.
Or something obnoxious, like conceptual words people use...
So pointless.
- Like "serenity and movement." - Or "Zen whatever."
Unless it's funny, like "Flipside of Zen."
Here we go.
- How about ROAR! for a title? - Roar. Roar.
Roar means like... Wow!
Then, Zoom! Whom! Roar! We can do that too?
No, just one.
Just one "roar!"
So this is Noriko's room. It's a work in progress.
Wait. Is he running away, with a bottle of booze?
He is running away, but there is no way he can afford booze.
He is running to his friend's so he can drink.
I see and you are stopping me, like, "Please, it's enough."
"Come on, I need milk for the baby."
- This is you and Ushio? - No, it's Cutie and Bullie.
Well, it's about me and her.
So it's going to be like a story?
Yes, it will go all around the room.
And then that'll be the end.
Nice space.
Big canvas.
- Jealous? Jealous? - Yeah. Yes.
I feel so free when you're not around.
Oh, so it's better if I'm not here?
Bye-bye.
At first, the story of Cutie was based on my past with Ushio.
Cutie had a life of struggle.
But after a while, gradually she became more independent.
Now Cutie defeats Bullie.
She conquers him. She controls him.
Cutie is very good at taming Bullie.
But it's not so easy to tame him in real life.
I wonder what ever happened with Alexandra from Guggenheim.
In Guggenheim, they decided to have Lee Ufan this year.
I wonder if they buy your works even if they don't exhibit.
- Who? - Guggenheim.
I don't think they'll buy it.
Octopus!
Hard to say what this is.
If it's good or bad or finished or unfinished.
I don't think it's good.
This is difficult.
Not working.
You're so negative.
You've got to be positive.
- Be positive about what? - Life is wonderful.
Life is wonderful. Life should be positive.
When it's blown to pieces, that's when it becomes art.
Art is messy and dirty when it pours out of you.
The New York Times once said, "Shinohara is amazing."
Listen...
Brother...
Why do I...
It makes me cry.
I believe in my career...
Goddamn it!
- Gyu-chan, Gyu-chan... - Why do I have to?
I want to cry...
I've got nothing.
Listen to me! This is so hard...
And it's so fantastic...
Now I've got nothing.
You see...
We are the ones suffering the most from art...
Art is a demon...
a demon that drags you along.
It's not something you can stop, even if you should.
Maybe you go insane.
Your wife leaves, your kid runs away.
You throw yourself away to be an artist.
"We've reached another morning, full of hope.
Let's have a productive day and follow our dreams."
That's what my dumb friend used to say.
Now he's dead.
I've decided to throw out my old ideas and start fresh with new ones.
I'm going to show another side of Ushio Shinohara.
Everyone is going to say, "This is Ushio Shinohara!"
Is it difficult being a couple and having the same profession?
We are like two flowers in one pot.
It's difficult. Sometimes we don't get enough nutrients for both of us.
But when everything goes well, we become two beautiful flowers.
So it's either heaven or hell.
I think this will work.
Oh, this must be the hamburger meat.
Is this all the hamburger meat we have?
I wrapped up all the leftovers.
Celery hamburger!
What the hell are you doing?
Ushio style!
One, two, three.
Damn, this is hard!
This hamburger is really dry.
Too much cook?
It's so dry.
Dinosaurs make a roar sound, right?
So that's going to be the title of my exhibition. Our exhibition.
Roar!
It's also perfect for Cutie's cry.
Cutie cannot cry like that.
It's strange if she cries like that.
Roar!
Yeah. Not like roar...
Cutie cries like this...
But when a dinosaur is hit, they make a roar sound.
No, it's not a sad cry. It's more like, "I'm going to kick your ass!"
Cutie is dangerous.
Cutie fights back.
Our show catalogue should be ready today.
The first time I read it, I was, like, "What the..."
It starts off talking about important artist couples,
like Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner,
and now Noriko Shinohara and Ushio Shinohara.
What the hell? That's crazy!
Is this the right way?
Be careful of this part.
- That's all of it, isn't it? - Yeah.
Dinosaur's roar is...
...roar, dinosaur roar!
It's my roar, the same.
Poison frog roar.
Samurai roar.
Fighting.
I don't care, but...
I don't like "Love Is..."
It's not necessary for me.
Who put "Love is..." in the title?
Oh, you? Why?
Why? Because I think so. Love is a roar.
I found out by experience.
- In my life. - Love is crying?
No, love is a roar.
It's always continuing for 20, 30 years.
The important thing is, you never agree.
I started thinking by myself.
I stopped to follow you.
If you have money, you can hire somebody and can do it,
like a secretary or, you know, assistant.
This is my dream.
I'm a free secretary, free assistant, free chef.
If you are rich, you can kick me out.
Like that, you are talking about.
You are poor, that's why you are with me.
I need you.
Because you need somebody to read the subway map.
Cutie hates Bullie?
No, Cutie loves Bullie so much.
What's funny about people,
is that opposites attract, like a magnet.
But similar personalities repel each other and break up.
Even when we were at each other's throats, there was passion and love.
It's not a typical romance.
Maybe being opposite helped us to accomplish something in the end.
But mainly it was my endurance, I think.
- Is this your work? - Yes.
So nice to meet you.
I recognized your pigtails from your art.
My life with Ushio has been a constant struggle.
But that has made me who I am today.
Now I think all of that struggle was necessary for my art.
So if I had to do it over again...
...I would.