Crying Out Love, in the Center of the World

2004, 138 min., 35 mm, color, in Japanese with English subtitles. Directed by Isao Yukisada. With Takao Osawa, Ko Shibasaki, Masami Nagasawa.

Best of Unreleased Naughties

Introduction and Q&A with director Isao Yukisada

The time is not so long ago, the place is southern Japan. The pace is nice and slow. The boy is Saku. The girl is Aki. The girl is pretty, smart, and athletic. The boy wouldn’t stand a chance in the real world. The kids are in junior high. The kids fall in love. The boy is a lucky bastard and he knows it. The kids hold hands. The kids are cute. The kids kiss. The tension rises. The mood is tumescent. The film is a melodrama. The film is not a pinku eiga. The kids go on summer vacation together. The girl records tapes for the boy to listen to. The boy records tapes too! The idea is cute. Love messages all over. The girl has a big problem though. The girl has a terminal disease. The girl is not having too much fun. The boy wants to take her to Ayer’s Rock in Australia. The place is far. The title makes sense. The girl is probably not going to make it. Or maybe she is. But the blurb is not a spoiler. The audience will cry.

The film is the best melodrama of the decade.

Part of Japan Cuts: Festival of Contemporary Japanese Cinema

TICKETS
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