Synopsis

Athlete (2019)

A former athlete, K?hei is a swimmer with a wife and child. One day his wife asks him to sign the divorce papers. From shock, he escapes to alcohol, finding himself one night in Tokyo’s gay district, Shinjuku Ni-ch?me, where his fateful meeting awaits with Y?taka, a beautiful twink. Y?taka makes a living from live sex webcams with men, but his dream is to become an anime creator. Y?taka however is tortured because he still hadn’t come out to his father who collapsed from illness. K?hei and Y?taka both carry a cross. They hesitate but can’t stop being drawn to each other as if they need each other. The two fall for each other, even at times hurting the other. K?hei however begins to struggle about what it means “to love somebody” and questions his “sexuality”, through his contacts with different personalities in the gay district. Meanwhile, Y?taka encounters his gay ex Atsushi, and starts to realize he will never be able to be with K?hei, who is gay-for-pay.
Takamasa Oe
Joe Nakamura, Kondo Yohdi, Reina Tasaki, Yoshiaki Umegaki
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