In the middle of a fierce commercial competition among three caramel companies, an executive builds up a ditzy teenage girl as a mascot while simultaneously trying to uncover the rival companies' plans.

As much a film of its moment as "Sweet Smell of Success" and just as lasting in its pertinence, this cruel satire is Masumura's masterpiece--although an excellent script (from a Ken Kaiko novel) and terrific cast deserve their share of the credit. Three confectionery companies are locked in cut-throat rivalry for a share of a market increasingly dominated by imported US candy. Goda (Takamatsu), a thrusting young exec with World Caramel, spots a young woman out shopping and decides to turn her into a celebrity who can star in his plan for a space-age ad campaign. Kyoko Shima (Nozoe), averagely pretty and with exceptionally bad teeth, takes to the Pygmalion treatment like a duck to water and leaves both her job with a failing taxi firm and her dysfunctional family behind. Goda's assistant Nishi (Kawaguchi), who dates a woman exec from a rival firm and proves a useless industrial spy, watches as the girl and his boss succumb to mega-greed; the film's ending turns on whether or not Nishi will have the balls to go his own moral way or submit to the diktats of Japan Inc. nicely paced, wittily conceived and imaginatively designed, this is the best of all proto-new wave movies. Director Masumura explores the non-ceasing battle between pursuit of profits and business ethics in Japan's increasingly cut-throat corporate world.—nishanth gunupudi

As three rival caramel companies prepare their annual promotional campaigns, the corporate backstabbing begins. But when the PR director of World Caramel discovers Kyoko, an unpolished girl, and makes her the new face of the campaign, the competitive tide seems to turn in their favor--until she becomes such a wild sensation that the entire campaign implodes.—Nishanth Gunupudi

Nishi is an advertising executive for a caramel company that is planning to launch a new product, in fierce competition with two other companies. His boss builds up Kyoko, a vivacious girl with bad teeth, as their mascot. Kyoko is smitten with Nishi when he is assigned to look after her. Meanwhile, Nishi is trying to extract information about his competitors advertising campaigns, from his girlfriend, who works for one rival company, and his old college friend, who works for the other one.—Will Gilbert