Customer Reviews

Maborosi [VHS]

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

If one is familiar with Kore-eda's later film _After Life_ one already knows that death and memory play key parts in his films. After creating stellar documentaries concerning such subjects as AIDS and what it is like for a Korean man passing himself off as Japanese for decades, Kore-eda created _Maborosi_ a film that takes a close look at the greif caused by losing a loved one.

The film starts off by showing a young girl named Yumiko trying to convince her grandmother to return home, however, the grandmother is determined to return home to die. Yumiko is unable to prevent her grandmother from leaving and this weighs on her young mind. Warp twelve or so years later and Yumiko is married to her childhood friend Ikuo and is the mother of a three year old son. Yumiko and Ikuo are far from well off, they live in a very small apartment with incredibly thin walls, but they seem to be decently happy. Well, at least Yumiko seems happy. After her husband brings home his bike and leaves with an umbrella, the next thing we learn is that he was killed walking on the train tracks. A suspected suicide.

Time passes and Yumiko's mother arranges her a marriage with a widower who lives in Kanazawa. Unlike her small apartment, Yumiko and her son move into a large old house with her new husband, his father, and his daughter. Ikuo gets along beautifully with his step-grandfather and step-sister and while it seems Yumiko likes her husband well enough, the shadow of Ikuo is always preasant.

This is a gorgeous film. Kore-eda does a wonderful job depicting the living conditions of a lower working class family and goes on to show ramshackle, but lovely older homes by the sea. Yumiko's husband's home looks incredibly shabby on the outside, but the polished hardwood floors and traditional furniture are extraordinary. Kore-eda also pays close attention to nature by showing the natural beauty of the region.

This movie is an all-time favorite of mine. I've seen it in the cinema close to ten times. The visual composition is extraordinary. Simple scenes like a bus coming into frame and around a corner--no plot, no action--are stunning and enthralling. The writing and acting are understated and powerful, finding the maximum expression with the minimum gesture.

That said, the second half is too long. Even I get tired and have trouble keeping focus and this is supposed to be one of my favorites.

References to Japanese culture may be slightly opaque, but actually it's really not hard to have some appreciation even without prior familiarity. For instance, a kettle on a flame in a household is a recurrent image. There may be some specific reference or message there, but I think it's sufficient to appreciate it as a sign of the warm interior of the household and the tea ready to serve to family or guests.

Now, the reason for 3 stars only: The transfer is horrendous, abysmal, outrageous--this travesty demands retribution on whoever is responsible. Many reviewers refer to dark, indistinct images where characters can't even be recognized. The screen image is snowy throughout. Let me assure you that this never occurs in a decent print of the film, and to issue this transfer is a crime.

Maborosi (Maboroshi no Hikari) is a beautiful film. It's simply one of the best movies in my Japanese collection (which isn't small). Not that having lived for several years in the rural area where much of the movie is set biases my opinion.

The imagery and music are wonderful. The story is contemplative and haunting. Esumi Makiko is beautiful. The acting is as natural as the Japanese countryside. Even after many viewings, this movie holds up -- I wish I could find more like this one.

this is an amazing film

haiku simple

images framed long and slow like the esteemed dutch painter contemplating something darker than his typical subject

few movies consider grief in such a profoundly and mysteriously moving way

thankyou Hiokazu Kore-eda

The cinematography gives this film more depth and meaning with the medium and long shots of events as they unfold in the lives of a Japanese couple ... Yumiko, her husband, and 3 month old son live in a small apartment in Osaka, evidently very much in love. We are privileged to view their lives in its elegant simplicity. Her husband bicycles to work at a factory nearby. Yumiko and he bicycle together to a nearby restaurant for coffee. Yumiko is haunted by a past event where her grandmother leaves the family to die in her own village ... It was her last wish.

Sadly, Yumiko gets a knock on the door, as several police officers ask about her husband and his job. She is accompanied to the police station where she is presented his belongings. There she is told, he walked in front of an oncoming train, despite its warnings, he kept on walking ... an apparent suicide. She is discouraged from viewing what is left of his body. She is distaught and receives help from a neighbor and her mother ... As time passes, four years go by, and a kindly neighbor becomes match-maker, as her son and she board a train to northern Japan to a small fishing village.

Yumiko partakes of a wedding celebration with her new husband, a haunting beautiful ballad is sung by a male guest as the wedding guests clap out the rhythm. Her new life begins ... The stark beauty of the mountain scenery, the shore, the village, and ocean are superbly filmed. Yumiko's son and stepdaughter explore the coast in breath-taking scenery ... Yumiko is enculturated into the lifestyle of the village. During one haunting scene, a group of villagers walk along a road to the sea coast ... There is a bonfire which could be a funeral pyre for someone. Yumiko is met by her husband as she sobs out her questions, why did he kill himself, what made him do it? Her second husband tells a story about the beguiling nature of the ocean which also calls to fishermen, when they are out fishing alone ... It is the nature of life to sometimes call some people back to the "maborosi" ("the light")... Erika Borsos [pepper flower]

I'm very enthusiastic about this movie (see my earlier review), however it should be noted that the quality of the print is extremely poor. The movie was transferred to tape and subtitled for release in the U.S. and unfortunately the DVD was taken from this low quality tape transfer rather than being printed from the film. If a better print were released in the U.S. I'd rush to buy it. How about it Criterion Collection?

This film is full of beautiful imagery as a japanese island lays the backdrop for a woman to quietly come to terms with her husbands suicide. The movie seems at times to play out in real time which will enthrall some and exasperate others. Yet I feel that if someone has found the patience for subtitles they can dig a little deeper and muster the thoughtfulness necessary as the main character's grief process is painted in slow satisfying strokes.

This film is in my top ten. I first saw it in a theater, where the natural light, amazing use of simple landscape, and the day to day aesthetic of japanese life is best appreciated. One thing the film is about for me is the way beauty is temporary and permanent all at the same time. We can lose things (including human relations) of great beauty and still forget how we are surrounded by it always. The ocean figures in this film as one example of this idea. A perfect story of love, a slow meditation on life, a beautiful canvas of light and dark.

This movie glides gently along, apace with the slow healing of a young widow's loss. With utterly minimal characterisation, the director still manages to capture vivid glimpses of Japan, both old and young. Most memorable is the beautiful and dramatic coastal scenery which is hauntingly powerful. At times, a heartbreakingly lonely film, it proceeds with its own calm logic, and the effect is quietly, yet deeply moving.

I saw the movie last night. Just wanted to warn people that the DVD has a bad transfer. It made it almost unwatchable for me.