Choosing Spouse by Lottery

With the nation’s birth rate at an all-time low and the age of the country's population on a steady incline, the Japanese government is on the verge of a national crisis. In order to combat these worrisome statistics, the government has decided to implement the “Marriage Lottery Act”. Under this new law, all citizens between the ages of 25-39, who are single and have no children, are required to attend government planned blind dates. After randomly selecting men and women for these state sanctioned dates, each citizen must attend their appointed marriage interview. Though they’re not necessarily required to agree to the government proposed marriage. In fact, each citizen has the right to decline the government’s proposal twice. However, if a suitable match cannot be made by then, a third rejection automatically enlists the individual into two years of service on the Anti-terrorism Activities Support Team. A twenty-six year old systems engineer, living alone in Tokyo, Tatsuhiko Miyasaka (Nomura Shuhei) was perfectly content with his single life. Suffering from some rather severe childhood trauma, life for Tatsuhiko was easier without other people in it. But now, thanks to this new law, Tatsuhiko finds himself forced to prepare for a date he never would have planned on his own. Meanwhile, another Tokyo resident, Nana Fuyumura (Rin Takanashi), finds herself in a very similar situation. Subject to the new law after a recent breakup with her boyfriend, Nana must now force herself back into the world of dating, or suffer the consequences. But what if she’s not ready? Forced together by their government, Tatsuhiko and Nana have no choice but to participate in their mandated marriage interview. But can two total strangers truly be expected to find life-long happiness under such unorthodox circumstances?  Based on the novel of the same name by Miu Kakiya, “Choosing Spouse by Lottery” is a 2018 drama directed by Ishikawa Junichi.