title: The Calamari Wrestler
text: # The Calamari Wrestler
  
  The Calamari Wrestler (いかレスラー, Ika resuraa) is a 2004 Japanese film by director Minoru Kawasaki, starring Kana Ishida and Osamu Nishimura.
  
  ## Plot
  
  The plot revolves around a professional wrestler who, after developing a terminal illness, becomes a giant squid-like creature (Osamu Nishimura). As a giant squid, he must battle to reclaim his former life both inside and outside the ring.
  
  ## Cast
  
  * Kana Ishida as Miyako
  * Osamu Nishimura as Kanichi Iwata/The Calamari Wrestler
  * Akira Nogami as Koji Taguchi/The Octopus Wrestler
  * Hirohisa Nakata as Godozan/The Squilla Boxer
  * Miho Shiraishi as Sister
  * Yoshihiro Takayama as himself
  * Hariken Ryu as Calamari Wrestler's suit actor
  
  ## Reception
  
  Jeannett Catsoulis of The New York Times described the film as goofy and bizarre "yet surprisingly coherent" with "a good-natured charm." Catsoulis commented on the themes of the film noting a "convincing parallel between the anxieties of post-World War II Japan and what the film calls the "utter chaos" of the country today."
  
  