Japan

This stirring, existential drama about death, sex, love and spiritual issues tells the story of a man from the city whose life has lost all sense. The man arrives in a small remote village with the aim of committing suicide. He finds shelter in the house of an old widow. After a few days his plans suddenly change and he senses a renewed interest in the things around him. The first impulse for the man’s return “to the land of the living” is the arrival of the widow’s nephew, just released from jail, who tries to rob the good-natured old woman. The other is far more surprising – the man’s sexual desire is reawakened and he aims for the farthest extreme: he asks the old widow to surrender herself to him. In her ceaseless goodness and wish to help the desperate man, the woman agrees. The widow’s assenting and devoted stance, however, finally paralyses the man and he realises that he isn’t yet capable of giving nor even accepting love and affection. Shortly after this unsuccessful love-making attempt, the old woman dies. The man cannot prevent it. The death of someone who loved and revered life helped to save and bring back the life of another. The man is now able to leave the village to which he had originally come to die. At the Cannes IFF the film took away a Special Mention awarded by the Camera d’Or jury, which assesses films by novice filmmakers.