Fear and Trembling

Amélie, a young Belgian woman who spent her childhood in Japan, decides to return to the country and live there, striving to integrate into Japanese society. She is determined to become a "real Japanese" before her one-year contract expires, though this very determination conflicts with the Japanese value of humility. Despite being offered a desirable position as a translator at an import/export company, her lack of understanding of Japanese cultural norms leads to a series of increasingly humiliating demotions. While Amélie secretly admires her immediate supervisor, the latter takes sadistic pleasure in belittling her throughout. Eventually, the supervisor breaks Amélie's will by demoting her to the role of bathroom attendant and is pleased when Amélie announces she will not renew her contract. Amélie believes she has finally become a real Japanese when she enters the company president's office "with fear and trembling," an outcome made possible only by Miss Fubuki's systematic psychological pressure.