Film No. 26 (2016) April 16th. 10.45 AM LUNA Leederville.
"I've been making An for 50 years, here have a taste" (Tokue (Kirin Kiki) tries to persuade Sentaro (Masatoshi Nagase) the he could use her help)
Naomi Kawase is a rare breed of Japanese feature film maker. Firstly she is definitely the only one with a non Japanese christian name and secondly she is a female. The Japanese film industry is notorious for lacking on the equal opportunity front. If An (Sweet Bean) is an indication of creative cinema devised by a female director then let the flood gates open. Kawase has made a beautiful, gentle film about the joys shared via the human spirit.
Be warned, An is a reflective drama, the type you attend if you are in the same frame of mind to take part in a meditation or ti chi session. Be prepared to luxuriate in the gentle charm of Tokue, an elderly lady with a lonely past but beautiful disposition. Tokue charms us as we meet her inquiring about a part-time job in a street corner cafe. The cafe has earned its reputation on the doriyaki it serves. Essential to the doriyaki is a sweet bean paste(An) sandwiched between two small pancakes. Tokue is persistent in her quest for the job, for good reason; she has her own An recipe.
The An becomes a vehicle, via the bent hands of Tokue, for cafe manager Sentaro and his loyal school girl customer Wakana, to learn about what it is to be both patient and compassionate. Virtues which once learned, will become wonderful tools for life.
While Mr Miaki (The Karate Kid) still has a cliche or two to answer for, in An, the gentle way Tokue infiltrates our psyche is skillful. Ms Kawase has executed her talents with a beautiful life lesson. Like the sweet bean paste of An, may her creative output become addictive. 9GUMS.
good review, mr greenwood. i don't know if you had much trouble locating a screening in perth but here in sydney, it has received virtually no publicity and its "wide" release is purely geographical - in three cinemas about 20 kms from each other. it's a good film and worth seeking out. it's slow-moving (that's not a complaint) and does come dangerously close to sentimental in its latter stages, but is warm, funny and gave me much pleasure.
ReplyDeleteAn is mostly in Nova Cinema with the Palace group closely following.
ReplyDeleteThe kids who loved and watched Anpanman would love to see this real-life slow-burn. They will definitely identify with Wakana.
Work on your romaji!