Matt Cooper Anime, Films

A Letter to Momo (2011) by Hiroyuki Okiura

Following the death of her father, Momo (Karen Miyama) moves with her mother Ikuko (Yuka) to the small island comunity of Shio, moving in with Ikuko’s aunt and uncle. Momo is still dealing with the regret of arguing with her father before his untimely demise in an accident; carrying with her an unfinished letter from him reading only ‘To Momo’. She soon has other things to worry about as three guardian spirits Iwa, Kawa and Mame (Toshiyuki Nishida, Koichi Yamadera, and Cho) arrive from Heaven to watch over Momo and her mother, taking the shape of yokai from a picture book in the attic.

“A Letter to Momo”, written and directed by Hiroyuki Okiura, is aimed squarely at children with a powerful message about loss and regret following the death of a parent. The animation is well-done, capturing the characters’ movements and the beautiful summer island scenery. In particular, the weather is depicted in stunning style, with darkening skies presaging rain, and the incredible force of a typhoon is palpable. Mina Kubota’s enjoyable score captures the youthful energy of Momo and the monsters. The puerile humour will no doubt appeal to young children, but often seems out of place given the dark subject matter, switching from contemplative drama to fart jokes rather than more character-driven comedy. There are several inexplicable elements to the plot, such as the yokai’s voracious appetites and kleptomania, and their reason for being there at all requires suspension of disbelief that may be beyond some older viewers.

The film deals with a young girl processing her father’s death; struggling with her guilt over her harsh words to him the last time they met. It is an important message for children and yet the film seems to struggle to examine this central tension outside of a few key scenes. The comic relief of the yokai, intended to break up the downbeat tone, is awkward and more emphasis on the other human characters, such as Momo’s new friends on the island, or her mother’s aunt and uncle may have provided more meaningful relationships for her. The film suffers in comparison to “Okko’s Inn” which had a similar theme and fantastical elements, but managed to bring them together in a more cohesive way. “A Letter to Momo” often feels unsure as to what age of child it is aimed at, failing to fully satisfy for either young children or older teens.

Matt Cooper Films

Itomichi (2021) by Satoko Yokohama

A reserved high-school girl finds her confidence after starting work at a maid cafe in this charming coming-of-age drama. Ito Soma (Ren Komai) lives with her father (Etsushi Toyokawa) and grandmother (Yoko Nishikawa) in rural Aomori, her mother having passed when she was still in kindergarten. Ito’s shy demeanour, partly relating to unresolved grief over the loss of her mother, isolates her from others at school; this is further exacerbated by her speech which is in a thick Tsugaru dialect. After seeing an advert for a part-time job at a maid cafe she travels to Aomori city, where she meets single-mother Sachiko (Mei Kurokawa) and Tomomi (Mayu Yokota), who are both employed as maids too, along with Mr. Kudo (Ayumu Nakajima), the shop manager. Ito begins to grow in confidence, finally making friends with a classmate and rediscovering the shamisen, which she had previously won competitions playing. When the maid cafe is threatened with closure, Ito and the other work together to try and save it.

Directed by Satoko Yokohama, with a script by Yokohama and Osamu Koshigaya, “Itomichi” is a beautiful portrayal of life in a rural area far from the bright-lights of Tokyo. Katsumi Yanagijima’s cinematography makes the most of the stunning vistas of mountains and fields in Ito’s local area, along with scenes shot in Aomori city. The entire crew, from lighting to music (overseen by Takuma Watanabe), create a quaint, relaxed atmosphere that draws you into this world. The cast give great performances, in particular Ren Komai in the lead role. We feel her nervousness and unease with her life and her struggles to fit in with those around her. On top of this, we are treated to incredible shamisen performances by this multi-talented actress. The script does a great job of bringing together a number of different characters, giving them just enough depth to ensure they are not simply background to the main plot. Sachiko is a single-mother, who has aged out of the usual maid cafe work, but who becomes a surrogate mother to Ito. Tomomi is a young woman with dreams of becoming a manga artist. Ito’s grandmother is a fun character with her broad accent; while Ito’s father also plays a pivotal role in her story. We also have Sanae (Jonagold), Ito’s classmate, who has great chemistry with Ito in their few scenes together. The film’s tone is comic at times, but shot through with heartfelt sentiment around the importance of family and friendship.

“Itomichi” is ostensibly a coming-of-age drama in which a young woman comes out of her shell, finds friendship and support in the people around her, and rediscovers her true passions. There are also deeper themes here around the passing of generations, with Ito’s father researching the Tsugaru dialect that seems to be falling out of use; and the difficulty Ito has in straddling these two worlds, that of a country girl, and a cosmopolitan woman. This duality is evidenced in Ito’s two Key interests, the part-time work at a maid cafe (a modern cultural phenomenon) and playing the shamisen (a traditional art). The importance of language is also central to the story as characters comment on the difficulty of communication, not only across language barriers, but cultural divisions, generational divides, and the often awkward act of connecting with other people. “Itomichi” is a delightful film with a message of community and following your dreams.

Matt Cooper Films

I Live in Fear (1955) by Akira Kurosawa

Toshiro Mifune plays an aging foundry-owner at war with his family in this drama touching on post-war nuclear fears. Kiichi Nakajima (Mifune) is the patriarch of a large family, including a number of illegitimate children alongside three children with his wife. Worried about the prospect of a nuclear strike and the radioactive fallout, he has decided to sell-off the profitable foundry, the family business, to buy a farm in South America. This follows a previous attempt to build an underground bunker which cost them a great deal of money. The children take their father to family-court to have him ruled unfit to make this decision. Among the panel of judges is dentist Harada (Takashi Shimura) who has some sympathy with the elderly Nakajima’s concerns.

“I Live in Fear” deals with one of the gravest themes of the mid-twentieth century: the threat of nuclear war and the subsequent dangers of radioation. Toshiro Mifune gives an incredible performance, one which the entire film revolves around, as a man who is genuinely worried for his childrens’ futures and feels that he must do what he can to protect them. The supporting cast play off Mifune as the contradictory forces to his passionate beliefs. When we are first introduced to them it seems a simple case wherein the elderly Kiichi is suffering paranoid delusions and his more level-headed family are attempting to calm him, or at least prevent him making any rash decisions. However, as the plot moves forward we realise that they are motivated by self-interest, and are perhaps deluding themselves to an equal degree in their nonchalant attitude to nuclear war. Kurosawa’s direction and the masterful script by Kurosawa, Shinobu Hashimoto and Hideo Oguni, along with the incredibly cinematography by Asakazu Nakai and a score by Fumio Hayasaka, come together to create a powerful film that is full of incredible moments, capturing the family dynamics that play out as a microcosm of wider debates around the issue.

While focussing on an individual family, the film speaks to all people who share Kiichi’s concerns, and those who ignore them. A grand-scale scene at the end of the film, in which the foundry has burnt down and the characters move about the wreckage while startled passersby look on, recalls the devastation of war-time bombings, making clear to people that this is not some fantastical nightmare of the protagonist but something that can and may again happen. The film is a stern rebuke to those whose self-interest and material concerns blind them to the greater dangers faced by society. The beautifully framed final scene at the end of the movie hints at the crossroads between heaven and hell that humanity finds itself at. We hold the power to destroy all life on earth, but also the ability to look beyond terrestrial concerns and consider the future of our species. A startling film with an engaging central dialogue that is exceptionally acted.

Matt Cooper Films

Survival Family (2016) by Shinobu Yaguchi

Following a mysterious powercut which affects all electrical appliances, including battery operated devices, a Tokyo family set out on a journey across the country to relatives in rural Kagoshima. The Suzukis are a typical city family, the children addicted to their mobile phones and computers and almost entirely reliant on technology in every aspect of their life. We see the children’s disdain for their grandfather after he sends the family a fish he has caught. When they wake up to find that all electricity is off in the city they at first struggle to adjust, having to walk the 10 floors down to the ground floor rather than take the elevator; needing to rely on bicycles rather than public transport; and being unable to perform many everyday tasks that have become commonplace. As the power-cut drags on they make the decision to set off on bicycles to reach their distant relative, in the hopes that things are different there.

Writer-director Shinobu Yaguchi crafts an interesting modern-day parable about society’s over-reliance on technology and the way that it affects humans both individually and socially. The spoilt children, Yui and Kenji, played by Wakana Aoi and Yuki Izumisawa, will be familiar to many along with their cossetted city-life. Their parents, played by Fumiyo Kohinata and Eri Fukatsu also do a great job as a married couple who have been through a lot together and fallen into a predictable, staid routine. The event leading to the powercut is left vague and is of little importance; instead the film focusses on the effects it has on the family’s relationships and how they engage with the world. There is a mythical quality to much of their story, being a modern day odyssee with unusual characters and events, such as the blind women who lead travellers through a dark tunnel, or their attempts to catch and later butcher a pig. As the film progresses it begins to shift from a lighthearted comedy about a seemingly temporary inconvenience to something darker, hinting at a genuinely apocalyptic possibility if humanity were to lose power indefinitely. The central cast do a great job as the family, capturing the parent-child relationships filled with fidelity and frustration. There are some moments of high drama, in particular when they come to cross a river, or are set upon by wild dogs, and humourous interludes, such as the father begrudgingly accepting help from a troupe of cyclists who seem perfectly content in this new world, self-sufficient on a diet of weeds and stream-water. The bucolic scenes, complemented by a beautiful score, show us the beauty alongside the terror, highlighting the things we often miss in our self-obsessed, media-focussed world.

“Survival Family” is a film that asks what would happen to a modern family if they were stripped of home comforts and forced to fend for themselves. It highlights the strength of humans to survive in difficult situations while also questioning our over-reliance on technology and how this affects our relationships not only with each other but with the world around us. At the conclusion of the film there is no doubt that the characters are left with a healthier attitude to life, less selfish, and more connected to their daily experiences. An interesting premise that is well-executed with an entertaining cast and several dramatic twists.

Matt Cooper Films

Father of the Milky Way Railroad (2023) by Izuru Narushima

The life story of Kenji Miyazawa, whose work “Night on the Milky Way Railroad” has become a classic of children’s literature, is one full of tragedy, as recounted in this heartbreaking biopic. Born in 1890 to Masajiro (Koji Yakusho) and Ichi (Maki Sakai), young Kenji is afflicted with a disease at an early age. Out of love for his son, his father stays with him in the hospital until he recovers. After recieving an education, Kenji (Masaki Suda) has his head full of foreign literature, refusing to take on his father’s pawn shop business. After becoming involved in the Nichiren Buddhist sect, Kenji begins writing, honouring a promise to his sister Toshi (Nana Mori), who contracts tuberculosis. Toshi loved Kenji’s tales as a child, and took his words that he would be the Japanese Hans Christian Anderson to heart. Kenji begins writing for Toshi, who sadly passes away, and later for his father who promises to be his biggest fan.

Unusually for a biopic, “Father of the Milky Way Railroad” resigns Kenji Miyazawa largely to a supporting role. Although we follow him through the important moments in his life: his early illness, his dalliance with Nichiren Buddhism, his educating of local farmers in agricultural science, his numerous disagreements with his father; it is in fact Masajiro who is at the heart of the drama. Despite his pride in his son, Kenji’s often naive, petulant, behaviour leads to them squabbling and reconciling a number of times. It is a charming depiction of this father-son relationship, with spellbinding performances from Koji Yakusho and Masaki Suda. The love they have for one another; their frustration at each other’s outlook due to the generational divide; Masajiro’s pride in his son’s achievements; and Kenji’s constant desire for his father’s praise, are sure to resonate with parents and children alike. Based on a novel by Yoshinobu Kado, with a screenplay by Riko Sakaguchi, director Izuru Narushima crafts a film that has a picturebook quality at times, with stunning landscapes depicted and the stylish reconstruction of early 20th Century Japan appearing as something straight out of a historical novel. Moments of high drama are captured with hand-held camerawork that highlights the incredible performances, not only from Yakusho and Suda, but from Nana Mori as Toshi, and Min Tanaka as Kenji’s grandfather. The scene of Kenji’s grandfather’s senility is particularly moving. The film is packed with tragic moments yet manages to remain optimistic in its outlook, perhaps due to the postive worldview of Kenji himself, whose humble selflessness shines through.

A lovingly crafted biopic of this renowned author, “Father of the Milky Way Railroad” will appeal to fans of the writer, who will enjoy this depiction of Kenji Miyazawa’s life and the relationships he had with his family, particularly his father and sister. For those unfamiliar with Miyazawa’s work there is still plenty to enjoy here, from the incredible period sets and costumes to the beautiful score. The final scene is a fitting tribute to Miyazawa’s life and work that encapsulates the eternal optimism of the author.