It has been announced that NHK's unique comedy show "Salaryman NEO" will be made into a movie starring Koike Teppei and Namase Katsuhisa.

"Salaryman NEO" is an omnibus format variety show that focuses on "salarymen" and "the workplace" as its theme. The movie version's drama-like story can be summed up as the back-and-forth between the boss, improper section chief Namase, and his subordinate, new hire Koike, who don't get along with each other.

Koike said enthusiastically, "I want to get everyone to laugh, I want to cheer everyone up even a little. I'll tackle it with all my strength. I'll do my best one by one and day by day." Sawamura Ikki and other regulars will also make an appearance in the movie.

The show was originally broadcast as a one-shot special on NHK in 2004, and in 2006 it was made into a regular program. Sawamura's "Sexy Department Chief" is also a character that was created on the show. In 2007 and 2008, the show was nominated two years in a row by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for an international Emmy award in the 'Comedy' category. The show gained popularity due to its surreal comedy not typical of NHK, and on May 10th it will begin its 6th season on the air.

The producer of the show commented, "In this recession and freeze on hiring, those of us who are working aren't necessarily at ease. With that in mind, we've been planning and promoting the movie version as an anthem for all of those workers. In the middle of that, a great disaster has occurred. Japan has been left with a grave set of circumstances, and is now carrying a great sadness. However, we all cannot stand still forever. We are going forward with the production of the movie with the thought that 'In order to regain Japan's spirit, we have to start with the spirit of the salaryman and office lady!'"

With situations where you think,�"It's not to that degree, but it happens", and smile, and unique characters who are "a little exaggerated, but those types exist", they're making a noisy leap from the TV to the big screen.



Working at fifth-ranked beer company,�NEO Beer, a nonsensical group of workers are assigned to the same sales unit. Along with new hire Shinshiro (Koike) and Hayakawa, who has an oddly aging face, the assembly of characters also includes irrational section chief Nakanishi (Namase) and Kawakami (Sawamura), who hasn't been able to get a single sale in five years.

Surrounded by volume sellers, and wining and dining alcohol distributors, the very picture of a typical salaryman, Seishiro gloomily wonders, "Will every day be like this from now on...?" Although already thinking about changing his line of work, the story unfolds quickly when he participates in a NEO Beer project meeting with no plan, and the new product he thinks up on the spot is somehow approved.

Despite having no ambition, he wastes no time getting started, and in an era where most workers quietly walk the path of the salaryman, by throwing a new hire into the mix, an unbelievable success story is born. Through this slapstick comedy, the true potential of the salaryman can be seen.

The movie is planned to open nationwide in November.

Source: Oricon