Kagi no Kakatta Heya - Drama Website - Ohno Interview
source: http://www.fujitv.co.jp/kagi/interview/index.html
The Locked Room Puzzle Mystery
Kagi no Kakatta Heya (The Locked Room)
Interview #01
04.06 Fri. Update
Playing the role of: Enomoto Kei
Ohno Satoshi-san
"I think we're alike because I tend to get fixated on one thing as well."
• You play the part of Enomoto, a "security otaku" who is an expert at picking locks and figuring out [the secret] to locked rooms. What impression do you have of Enomoto?
* otaku = otaku denotes someone with a near-maniacal knowledge base on a certain topic. A nerd or geek.
Apparently, when Enomoto was little, he was a latchkey kid and never interacted much with people. It's said that as he touched and played with a lock, it opened up and that's how he became obsessed with them. I think we're alike because I tend to get fixated on one thing as well. But, looking at the script, he spouts terminology that I've never even heard of before, so I think we're different as well (laughs). But it's that difference that makes it fun to play him. I've never played a character like Enomoto before, so this feels new/fresh.
• Is there something you keep in mind when you portray him?
I guess it would be the way he seems indifferent when he speaks? That and how little he moves (laughs). Basically, I'm portraying him the way I've been instructed to by the director, but this is the first time I've played anyone so lacking in facial expression. He moves so little that it made me want to try things. So I'd move just a little, or shift my gaze and the director would say, "Don't move. Just keep looking straight ahead and deliver your lines" (laughs). So, I just play him [Enomoto].
• He really is different from your previous roles.
Right. For example, in "Kaibutsu-kun" or that comedic piece where I played a freeter [probably a reference to his "Yuukai" SP], I got a sense of enjoyment from moving around and playing around with how I could deliver my lines in an interesting way. This time, it's the opposite. I don't move, I just deliver my lines in a bland manner. But, that's what makes it even more interesting to me. Even as I watch [the playback] on the monitor, It's really interesting. But I may be the only one who thinks that. (laughs).
** freeter = person [usually younger] who can/has not settled on a career and makes a living by working part-time jobs.
• "Kagi no Kakatta Heya" goes all out as a puzzle mystery, and you solve cases involving locked rooms. There are complicated tricks involved and the script is difficult, isn't it?
Well, I'd anticipated right from the start that it would be difficult and that I'd have a lot of lines. When I opened up the script, it was like, "See? Just like I thought!" (laughs). But it talked about keys and locked room crimes, things I hadn't known about before, so there's this sense of fun and amazement when I read it: "Eh! If you do this, this happens?"
• Enomoto has a lot of difficult lines. Is there a trick to memorizing them?
I spend forever learning my lines at home. I memorize them frantically at night, and hope that they've sorted themselves out in my head by the next morning. But there are times when that hasn't been the case at all (laughs). I tried memorizing them by writing them out, but in my case, I focused on how neatly I could write them and ended up not memorizing them at all. So I stopped (laughs). I just go on, reading and memorizing them. But dramas aren't like stageplays. Even though I've put in all this effort to learn my lines, there are times when I may deliver them only once and then [the scene] wraps and I never get the chance to ever say them again. That makes me happy, but a little sad as well.
"I think figuring out the tricks used [for the locked rooms] is fun and you get this sense of accomplishment. And in the same vein, the more challenging the mystery, the more driven Enomoto is."
• You've completed filming scenes where you've solved the mystery; did you discover anything [during that process]?
While I was filming, I had a professional locksmith coaching me, so I was able to pick [locks] with ease. They taught me about the [lock's] mechanisms and how to pick it, so I thought I could do it on my own. So I tried [doing it on my own] during breaks but I couldn't get it to open at all (laughs). I guess it would be a problem if you could pick a lock that easily though. But it's interesting to see [types of] locks and safes that I'd never seen before. And it's not as if I dislike doing detailed work like lock picking.
• How are things going with the Locked Room Crime Solving team of Sato Kouichi-san and Toda Erika-san?
Prior to this, I'd only worked with them a little on variety shows. This is the first time I've had the opportunity to act with them. Toda-san has it as well, but I get this feeling in particular from Kouichi-san. There's this something that I can feel emanating strongly from him in his acting. Kouichi-san plays [the role of] Serizawa, who is astonished by and admires Enomoto's crime solving and lock picking abilities. Because it [Ohno's character/role] is unusual, he told me that my role was kinda better [than his]. That made me kinda happy (laughs). Basically, the three of us work together, but the characters we play are completely different from one another. As we continue to talk with one another, I hope the three of us can build up a good rhythm and atmosphere/aura.
• And could you please tell everyone looking forward to the drama what the highlight [of the show] is?
The highlight is solving the mystery of the locked rooms. I think the tricks and the camera angles/shots we use will seem new/fresh. And considering this is an unlikely role for me -- taking on the challenge of crime solving -- I think that might be new/interesting. Also, it's fun because you get this sense of accomplishment; you're not just trying to guess who the culprit is, but you're figuring out the trick he/she used as well. And in the same vein, the more challenging the mystery, the more driven Enomoto is. So please, I hope many people will watch [the show].
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Was intrigued by the drama so I checked out the website and found some interesting tidbits there. Enjoying the drama? I am! :D