

Director: Takashi Yamazaki
Cast: Hidetaka Yoshioka, Shinichi Tsutsumi, Maki Horikita

The film garnered 12 (out of 13) awards in Japan Academy Awards in 2005

Synopsis
Set in 1958, more than a decade after the World War, the film revolves around the lives of various characters living across one another on a street in Tokyo ...

My thoughts

-- Piqued by curiosity (as to why it could have swept nearly all the awards that year) and two years of anticipation, the film still has not made it to our local big screen. Yes, I still think it is a film that should be watched on the BIG screen ...

-- Superficially, one can appreciate the film from its plot. However, it deserves more scrutiny than that, as it is a film about humanity and hope ... It is as much about the past as well as the future ... It is about dream vs reality ... Life is seemingly so simple, and yet so complex ... It is about the old and the young ... It is about abandonment as well as reunion ... It is about loss and found ... It is about family and friends ... It is about love ... Well, one can actually probe and dig real deep ... I can corroborate my arguments with details on the plot, but I guess you are wonderful enough to unravel them yourselves ... 

-- And if you have heard negative comments for this film, from those who may not have liked it as much, it is not difficult to hazard a guess ... 

(i) the acting ... if you are more accustomed to subdued emotions, the exaggerated expressions may be over the top; however, if you have watched substantial japanese films, you will be able to accept and credit the cast for their style of acting and expressiveness ...

(ii) the story ... some may find the initial half lack of "dramatic" elements and the second half too full of "melodramatic" moments; but to others, the initial half actually sets the stage and the second half sets our tearducts to work ... yup, the winning formula of FIRST LAUGHTER, THEN TEARS ... hee hee

Conclusion
Highly recommended, as it gets better as the film progresses. Maybe you will be touched, maybe you will not be ... However, if you are willing to re-watch it and re-analyze it beyond its basic plot, a lot can be unravelled ... 

If all else fail, at least give the film two big CLAPS ... one for all its technicalities (both visual and audio) ... and one for its naunces and nostalgia ...


PS: For those who are interested, here is an interview with the director
click
http://www.dmc.keio.ac.jp/en/review/0609_nyaff2.html