The Stairway to the Distant Past

Launched to stardom by Jim Jarmusch’s Mystery Train (1989), enigmatic actor Masatoshi Nagase thrives as the hardboiled detective wannabe Maiku Hama in Kaizo Hayashi’s trilogy of the same name, encompassing The Most Terrible Time in My Life (1993), The Stairway to the Distant Past (1995) and The Trap (1996). Stomping through the bustling-and-hustling port city of Yokohama, Hama operates out of a run-down movie theatre and his office sees every kind of customer: from rich ladies looking for runaway pups to serial murderers who look suspiciously like himself… Equal part American hardboiled detective pastiche, Seijun Suzuki-style Nikkatsu akushon send-up, and Masatoshi Nagase’s own new school comedic charmer, the Maiku Hama Trilogy is a cult phenomena of 90s Japanese cinema, presented here from its new 4K restoration. 

In The Stairway to the Distant Past, now in vibrant colour, Maiku Hama returns in a dashing convertible that is promptly repo’d. Taking on odd jobs like looking for lost dogs, Hama’s search leads him to a past he thought he’d left him behind as the port city’s most legendary stripper returns and gangs vie for the control of the waterfront.

Kaizo Hayashi is a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He made his directorial debut with To Sleep so as to Dream. He is best known for his neo-noir Maiku Hama trilogy, The Most Terrible Time in My Life, Stairway to the Distant Past and The Trap.