(About Her Brother) Family Matters - Karen

To celebrate opening night of the festival we are covering the wonderful performances of Japanese starlet, Yu Aoi. She can be seen up on the big screen for the first 2 nights of the festival, in "About Her Brother" and "Flowers" respectively. You can catch Joseph's review of "Flowers" here, or read on below to see first time contributor Karen Michelmore's piece on "About Her Brother".

I don’t know anyone who has a normal family. 

Usually there is one crazy cousin somewhere, or sibling who is eccentrically and outlandishly always themselves. 

There’s also usually a wide array of personality types, and issues bubbling away, which can combine on occasion into a powder keg of emotion. 

'About Her Brother' is no different. It’s pretty real in this way. 

It’s the story of a small family in a quiet part of Tokyo.

Three generations of women in one house, and the result of this situation.

"Gingko is a pharmacist and a widow. Her daughter Koharu (Yu Aoi) – and the film’s sometimes narrator - marries and divorces a pretty ordinary doctor. And her mother complains constantly about her own loneliness and lack of companionship. But no one’s listening. But the film isn’t a story about the relationships between these women. They are not really explored in any meaningful way. As the title suggests, it’s all about Gingko (Sayuri Yoshinaga - Kabei Our Mother - 12th JFF) and her alcoholic brother, Tetsuro.

Tetsuro is the kind of person who bumbles through life, blissfully unaware of the mayhem he’s created. Or seemingly so. The 126-minute film – directed by veteran Yoji Yamada – is dotted with comedy from Tetsuro, played by Tsurube Shofukutei (also seen in Dear Doctor - 14th JFF). During one particularly memorable wedding scene, you’ll probably laugh out loud (well I did), as he gets drunk and wreaks a trail of destruction at a rather staid event, much to the horror of guests. He challenges the fuddy-duddy nature of some Tokyo traditions, reminding us in his own unconventional way that it is supposed to be a celebration after all.

His initial scenes reminded me of the old black and white Jerry Lewis movies and are a pleasant injection of humor and sparkle into a film that has a poignant underlying message, and takes quite a depressing turn when Tetsuro becomes ill. Behind Tetsuro’s mirth is a subtle but sad story of addiction and isolation. This film will make you think about the family dynamics of guilt, obligation and frustration. The message is pretty simple. Sometimes family members infuriate us. Most of the time we love them unconditionally anyway." by Karen Michelmore

Thanks to Karen for that piece. While the main story arc of the film is the relationship between Gingko and 'Her Brother', the plot of the film revolves around Aoi's Koharu, and her perofrmance can not be discounted. She has a strong bond with Tetsuro (he named her afterall) and this is tried and tested throughout. Aoi is able to play the innocent girl being married off to a new family quite profoundly, something she does in both "About Her Brother" and "Flowers". The 2 roles differ slightly in their outcome, but both portray the trials and tribulations of a young woman in Japanese society, and the life choices that are presented to them.

Having won best supporting actress for three films in a row (Honey and Clover, Hula Girls and Rainbow Song) and with these two emerging roles, Yu Aoi is one to watch for the future. Don't miss her at the 14th Japanese Film Festival in Sydney tonight!

See you at the festival!

(Dear Doctor) I Had An Appointment - Samson

Today we ramp up our look at the films in the festival, with Samson taking a fine tooth comb to our Wednesday night lineup. You can see his thoughts on the Hitchcock-esque suspense thriller Zero Focus here, or read on to take a trip to the Doctors office with Dear Doctor. Its just 4 days till the festival kicks off in Sydney, so start planning your film lineup!

Dear Doctor,

It’s been 6 months since you left without saying goodbye. There have been a lot of rumours about you, but even if they are all true, we still want to tell you how grateful we are for all the things that you have done for our village over the past few years.

Yours sincerely,

Residents of your village

"A country doctor has gone missing. The police is involved and soon discovers that while most of the village people think remarkably highly of him, there is actually little known about him. As they go on to interview many of those who were closely associated with him, it becomes apparent that he is a man with many secrets...

The title of the film is one of the best I have seen in recent years. Simple, yes, but also deeply meaningful. The film could easily have been called Disappearance of Osamu Ino, but that would not highlight what a special character this doctor is. The word ‘dear’ in the title does not refer to the cost of this doctor’s service (though the movie does hint that he earns a fortune), but how close he is to the villagers and the place he has in the hearts of many of them.

It is ironic then, that his real identity is at conflict with his perceived role of a doctor. I don’t want to discuss this here for it may spoil your viewing pleasure. All I want to say is that the character is flawed but at the same time compelling. Actor Tsurube Shôfukutei (About Her Brother - JFF14) brings the doctor character to life, and impressively achieves so not so much by spoken words, but his facial expressions and body language that perfectly portray the conflicting emotions of pride and guilt experienced by Dr Ino.

The cast is stellar and performances are solid all round. Stand outs include those by Kimiko Yo (A Lone Scalpel - 14th JFF, Departures - 12th JFF) playing the experienced nurse who frequently keeps the doctor out of trouble at times of crisis (and deservingly winning the Japanese Academy Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role), Kaoru Yachigusa playing the very ill elderly widow in what I consider an equally impressive performance as Yo’s, and Teruyuki Kagawa (The Summit: A Chronicle of Stones - 14th JFF, Memories of Matsuko  -12th JFF) playing the drug company sales representative who perhaps knows the most about the doctor’s secrets.

The story is told brilliantly by director Miwa Nishikawa, who also wrote the script, for which she won Screenplay of the Year at the Japanese Academy Award. She progressively and cleverly reveals the doctor’s role in this small village, and the reason so many people, including young medical intern Dr Suma, come to respect him so much despite his often ineffective treatment.

Dear Doctor is a fine example of an interesting story told well, and ultimately it is a rich character-driven drama featuring great performances. Just as a bonus, the Japanese countryside is wonderfully captured on film by the camera of Katsumi Yanagijima (Battle Royale, Zatoichi) and this is a gorgeous picture to look at. I would sincerely recommend this film to anyone who enjoys fine dramas." - Samson Kwok, Heroic Cinema

Don't forget to look out for the stars of "Dear Doctor" in our Opening and Closing night films, Tsurube Shofukutei ("About Her Brother"), and Kimiko Yo ("A Lone Scalpel"). Wednesday promises to be a great day out at Event Cinemas, and we hope to see you there!