TOKYO -- Koki Mitani, Japan's king of comedy whose 2005 feature comedy "Suite Dreams" earned Y6 billion ($49 million) at the Japanese BO, has announced production of his new pic, "The Magic Hour."

For the new pic, Mitani told reporters in Tokyo on Monday, he is aiming for twice the scale and twice the B.O. of "Suite Dreams" -- Y12 billion ($98.4 million.)

The story, by Mitani, is about a gangster (Satoshi Tsumabuki) who become involved with the lover (Eri Fukatsu) of his boss (Toshiyuki Nishida) and, to save his own hide when the affair is uncovered, promises to recruit a famous hitman -- and hires a no-name actor (Koichi Sato) to impersonate the hitman until he can find the real thing.

"I want to make a perfect comedy that will go down in history and make the audience laughs three times a minute, while also incorporating the elements of a human drama," Mitani told reporters. Adding that the "sky is the limit" for the budget," Mitani said he plans to build sets at the Toho studio totaling 3,675 square meters (39,557 square feet) in area. The pic, as described by Mitani will have gun play, car chases and other action in addition to the laughs.

The pic is skedded for release in 2008, with Toho distribbing.

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