Attending film festivals can be a bitch (boo hoo, we know, your heart bleeds…). You generally have a tremendous time watching films all day, but finding the time and energy to write reviews for each one of them can be often be impossible. This was the case with the Indepedent Film Festival of Boston. While we did review several films (including, “‘Big Fan” and “500 Days of Summer” to name a few bigger examples), we never did properly review one of our favorite films from the festival and probably one of our favorites movies of the year so far [ed. need to update date that Best 2009 films so far…] — Hirokazu Kore-Eda’s “Still Walking” from Japan, which won the audience award at the festival.
While yes, the multi-generational family drama is very Yasujiro Ozu in its minimalism and carefully exquisite attention to detail and emotional observation, it is also a tremendously moving (and often times quietly devastating) portrait about the complex and loaded relationships we have with family and parents. It’s a rich and genuine picture replete with the all-t00-real mixed feelings many of us generally feel towards our family — there’s affection and love, but there’s also bitterness, resent and acidity that sometimes are insurmountable. The melancholy conveyed from the realization that not all these feelings can be effectively negotiated is pretty damn trenchant too.
Critics seem to agree too. The picture was selected as the best film at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival in a poll conducted by Indiewire critics above pictures like, “Che,” “The Wrestler,” etc. Here’s the synopsis:
Fifteen years ago, Junpei, the youngest son of the Yokoyama family died while rescuing a boy from drowning. On the anniversary of his death, the remaining siblings visit the quaint home of their parents with their families in tow. Over the course of a beautiful day, new relatives become acquainted telling stories and squabbling over sizzling tempura and an elegant graveside ritual is performed for Junpei. Recalling the delicate splendor of Yasujiro Ozu’s TOKYO STORY, Kore-Eda shows complete mastery of his characters while revealing the complex dynamics of an ultimately loving family with humor and warmth.
We warn the trailer is a little bit saccharine and sweetie-pie, family-like in the beginning (the poster too, obviously), but it’s really nothing like that (that annoying song isn’t in the picture that we can recall). However, around the 1:50 mark, the real tenor of the picture sinks in. It’s really a beautiful film and that last half of the trailer nails it well. The film also has a release date now which is August 28 via IFC pictures. We encourage you to go out of your way to see it.
Update: New York/Brooklyn Playlist readers should note: There will be a retrospective of Kore-Eda’s work in August at BAM. More details here.