Over the last few years, when everything went online, I started to join events at the Japan Society, in particular their book club and film club events.
An up and coming film we are meeting to discuss is Still Walking by Hirokazu Kore-eda. Available to view at BFI online.
Hirokazu Kore-eda is one of the most celebrated and awarded Japanese filmmakers in contemporary cinema. Working as film director, producer, screenwriter and editor, he is known for his sensitive depictions of family life and social issues in contemporary Japan.
After studying literature at Waseda University in Tokyo, Hirokazu Kore-eda (also often written as Koreeda) embarked on a career making documentaries for Japanese television which has shaped and influenced his approach to film-making. Most of his fictional films are rooted in true stories and personal experiences with a slow paced style and naturalised acting.
Still Walking (2008) is not Hirokazu Kore-eda’s most recent film, but is considered his masterpiece. It is an elegiac film which could be said to be the epitome of wabi sabi. A film coloured with tender loss, unfulfilled hopes and unmet expectations.
The Yokoyama family have a reunion each year to commemorate the death of the elder son Junpei, who drowned while saving a boy over a decade ago. The father, a retired doctor, withdraws from the family get together, disappointed that neither of his sons have followed in his footsteps. The mother endlessly delivering love and connection through cooking and caring for her extended family. The second son, Ryota, who has come to terms with his brothers loss, is weighed down by his father’s extended ambition and grief. And the daughter and her family bringing noise and life to the family scene.
As well as this poignant family get together, also invited each year is the boy whom the eldest son saved from drowning. It is an awkward scene. The boy also not living up to expectations of having his precious life saved. The mother keen to make him feel the pain and burden of loss she feels all year round.
But this is not a difficult film to watch. It is gentle, understated. A family getting on with their lives, loves and journeys in the wake of a tragic event. The performances are so natural that it really does feel almost documentary like. Utterly absorbing, the close ups of cooking, eating, and everyday life draw you into the experience.
Hirokazu said the film was a direct response to the death of his mother. It was a moment of realisation for him as he was aware that deeply personal films could have such resonance and impact.
On the BFI player there are many more films by Hirokazu Kore-eda. And I am slowly working my way through them. I don’t want to binge watch them as each film is so unique and rich they need time to absorb.
The Japan Society is running a free film night to discuss this film. Why not watch it and join in?
Japanese Film
This Kore-eda film is said to be reminiscent of another renowned Japanese film maker Ozu.
Ozu is famed for a personal intimate simplicity; Tokyo Story his most applauded film. Ozu and Korusawa are said to be the two greats of Japanese Cinema.
I came across this excellent short film exploring these two film makers and after watching this, and perhaps watching Tokyo Story, you too may see comparisons between Ozu and Hirokazu Kore-eda.
More about Hirokazu Kore-eda
Here is a great summary of Koreeda’s other films.
The Watershed in Bristol ran a restrospective of his films in 2019 with summaries and trailers.
Hirokazu Kore-eda won the Canne Palme d’Or for his film Shoplifters. His most recent film is Broker.