I managed to understand most of the main plot. It's just that ending scene with Ryotaro that had me confused,…
I concur with the time slip, that might be the correct assumption and this trick has been used time and time again in the genre (most recently in Netflix's Ju-on 2020). However, it still fails to explain the existence of Ryotaro's biological mother. A more plausible explanation is that the baby wasn't the only villager who escaped the massacre (the lady came from other lineage related to the village). Perhaps unbeknownst to everyone Yai had another offspring aside from Kanade's mother, which later bore the Ryotaro's biological mother? Or it simply has nothing to do with the occurrence in Inunaki Mura, i.e. Kanade's sixth sense was awakened sometime after Akina's incidence so that she can see the ghost of the lady (although this argument can be refuted by the fact Ryotaro has werewolf trait like Kanade's family)?
I'm still not dismissing it as plot hole, perhaps there could be some hints or even explanations in the upcoming sequel (Jukai Mura).
Beautifully yet unassumingly shot, this movie is as slice as life as it gets. The nostalgic feeling, both in Mio's hometown (I think it's set somewhere in Hiroshima) and East Tokyo's working class Shitamachi district, is so overwhelming especially towards the end of the movie. It also carries very strong and impactful message of the soul of such rustic and somewhat forgotten but colorful neighborhood, juxtaposed with gentrification in the name of 'progress'.
On side note, I like that they incorporate a bit of elements of diversity through portrayal of Ethiopian immigrant community in the Shitamachi area. This movie might raise the issue as well, especially when more and more people from different backgrounds move and live in Japan (or Tokyo in particular). I think 8.75/10 is a fair score for me.
PS: There is also a commercial/video clip style spin off of the movie. This time around, it shows the aftermath of the main movie from different perspective.
It's been 7-8 years since I wrote my opinion on her career (you can scroll down this page to find it). Glad to see her finally gets her acts together and becomes such an irreplaceable and indispensable actor in very dark, gritty roles (such as that of WOWOW projects). She basically goes into beast mode in Eerie, Plage, Nigeru Onna, and her bits in Cold Case season 1.
lol like the wordplay in ep.4, 'urenai' (売れない literally means 'unsold', implies to the sharehouse members who aren't in demand in respective professions and 'uranai' (占い, meaning 'fortune telling'). Brilliant storytelling.
No idea. If it's somehow leaked to the internet (they haven't announced the release date of the DVD), I hope some subber will pick it up. Or perhaps some film festivals will, but the chances are slim especially in these times :(
This is one rare occasion where the massive hype is justified by the quality itself. Easily one of the best movies in an already good year for Japanese cinema (by recent day standard), perhaps up there along with Alps Stand no Hashi no Hou in my books. It's quite an ambitious movie with strong message, but this time they have such strong budget and production and extremely selective cast list (well for the last one it's Kawase's Naomi's though, no surprises) to back it up. For those wondering how the nature elements could take part in a such human relation-oriented movie, which is Kawase's trademark, just check out the cinematography works. Not necessarily a focus, but still serves and blends in superbly well.
The story line and chain of events are exquisitely presented, especially the heart-breaking descend of Hikari (the teenage girl who is the little boy's biological mother) into oblivion and how lack of empathy from her surroundings pushes her to the edge. The cast, unsurprisingly, doing extremely well especially Makita Aju as Hikari who could be well a generational talent. Even the new bunch of talents, which are one of the reasons why I'm after this movie, i.e. the kid playing Hikari's boyfriend, Morita Kokoro, and Komai Ren perform really well and have their moments too.
2 
I'm still not dismissing it as plot hole, perhaps there could be some hints or even explanations in the upcoming sequel (Jukai Mura).
On side note, I like that they incorporate a bit of elements of diversity through portrayal of Ethiopian immigrant community in the Shitamachi area. This movie might raise the issue as well, especially when more and more people from different backgrounds move and live in Japan (or Tokyo in particular). I think 8.75/10 is a fair score for me.
PS: There is also a commercial/video clip style spin off of the movie. This time around, it shows the aftermath of the main movie from different perspective.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKOZAfeSwWI
The story line and chain of events are exquisitely presented, especially the heart-breaking descend of Hikari (the teenage girl who is the little boy's biological mother) into oblivion and how lack of empathy from her surroundings pushes her to the edge. The cast, unsurprisingly, doing extremely well especially Makita Aju as Hikari who could be well a generational talent. Even the new bunch of talents, which are one of the reasons why I'm after this movie, i.e. the kid playing Hikari's boyfriend, Morita Kokoro, and Komai Ren perform really well and have their moments too.
9.25/10
Furukawa Kotone: it’s a free real estate
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