Director/Writer Seisoku Kajita; Starring Ken Ogata, Komaki Kurihara, Issa Hentona, Ryoko Kuninaka, and Masahiko.
Screenings: 03/06 12:00pm (Rep); 03/09 2:30pm 03/12 2:30pm (UT-SJSU);
Japanese with English subtitles
United States Primiere
A turn in the road and reflecting mirrors may be metaphors for man’s search for direction, but sometimes a film is just a film and the suggested symbolism is in the eye of the beholder.
Minagawa is involved in an accident where he nearly runs over a child. The cause is possibly a dirty traffic mirror used to see around blind corners. His perfectly ordered world comes to a standstill as he becomes fixated on the accident site. After 30 years of working without taking a vacation, Minagawa abandons his family and employment without explanation and begins cleaning all the traffic mirrors in town. That not being enough, he expands his efforts to include all the traffic mirrors in the nation. His compulsive obsessive behavior begins to alienate his children leaving his wife unsure how to defend or even understand him.
Much of the slow paced film is viewed with Minagawa riding a bicycle or sitting atop a step ladder polishing mirrors, maybe too much so. And, much of the development of Minagawa’s depression and aberrant behavior was left to the viewer.
Still, the film offered a comfortable view of the orderliness of Japanese life, the distress of a caring wife, and a quiet and unique conclusion. Included are some beautiful views of the Japanese landscape.