Who payed the critics

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

The story is told with a large economy of words, of actions, of images: it is a supremely ascetic film. The people are always in the distance, the images always in the dark. The only images that are clear are the scenes remembered by the protagonist: the woman that lost her first spouse.It is a very radical cinematographic approach. I would say that it cannot be more radical than that. It is the movie from the mind of the protagonist.But if you have the guts to follow this ascetic movie you'll be generously rewarded. Because it is actually an exquisite artwork. Yes, many images are left in obscurity: it is actually a great play of light and obscure. As for the images that have meaning for the protagonist, the camera is in such moments like caressing the whole: the scenery becomes then pure visual choreography.

I first liked the silence in this movie, but later I decided that it tells us about speechlessness, especially connected with the occurrence of sudden death. As an European, or simply feeling with Yumiko, I often said to her by myself "lets go and cry the hell out", but she didn't or it wasn't shown and I interpret this as Japanese behavior. She seems to be very smart and holds her feelings back. She adapts to the situation and won't allow any grief to take her over. But sometimes - I personally think - you should let you been overpowered by grief and sadness, so that the inner pressure can find a valve. Otherwise you could be damaged. When Yumiko visits her mother after a time, she looks like she came over. But she didn't. The barkeeper in the little coffee/tea shop tells her that he had seen her husband just before the incident, and he says that he looked and behaved as usual. This brings back the whole thing to Yumiko, and I felt a big power in this scene. I feared she would go back to their common apartment unprepared, and so she does, and so she is punished by the unmanaged remnants of her lost past.I liked the look of the movie, but I could not adore some painting-like stills or wonderful shots. Therefore I have seen too many movies in such a style, especially from Japan or Korea. And I don't give much about the style when I see such a movie, because a deeper going movie doesn't need style to reach me. I liked that the pictures weren't so beautiful, as in other Japanese productions. More or less, I had a good impression to see real places and follow real people in real life. Real life is often dull, gray or sad, especially when you lose your beloved partner. The reason is not that important, because what lasts is the partner's absence.Thus the causing of Yumikos first husbands' suicide is not important, and it is clear from the beginning that she never will find out. It is a constructed event that should lead us away from every disturbing explanation. The try to explain it on the end with some mystical light is a crutch, formed from helplessness. Instead, her new husband - how he lost his former wife stays in the dark - should have had a serious talk with her, about hers and his feelings, about life and death, about their inner movings. Isn't it strange that she only wants to speak with him when he is very drunken and not able to answer ? I identify the lack of discussion, the lack of review (which is fascinating for many viewers of the movie) as the real sadness, and the movie wants to tell about what happens if everybody keeps calm as required in Japan - nothing spectacular, but probably nothing enjoyable.We are helpless against fate - more modern: statistics - and helpless against the fragile illusion of a stable life and continuity, but not with our inner worlds. Being together means also sharing thoughts, not only relatives or day-work.

A slow paced film that lets you have some empathy for a life changed by inexplicable loss, diverted to unexpected place and contemplation. Despite the intensity possible in the theme, the behavior is a compelling mixture of detachment and continuation of everyday activity, while underneath you can see the memories are unresolved. Some nice acting, especially if you can attune yourself to subtleties of normal life and are not expecting "larger than life" displays. The photography is beautiful and alternates with the acting in setting the mood and being the focus of attention.I watched the US DVD version, which has somewhat disappointing video quality. You can see the director took some spectacular imagery which I have got to hope came out better on film, because on the DVD the resolution is muddy at times and some of the color is flat. It is just a bit better than VHS. A real pity they could not make a better digital transfer of such a visual artwork. Most of the soundtrack is voices and background environment which fits perfectly with the film, there is one sequence with (very effective) music soundtrack.

SPOILER I did like this movie... It was pretty, and sad. The original story was written by my mother's fav. writer Teru Miyamoto. His story is often dark, the director has paid excellent attention to the detail of Miyamoto's writing. Miyamoto's writing is almost exactlly the way movie was put... Story was strange, husband commiting suicide w/o reasons... If you like artsy movie, I think you should check it out.