Hirokazu Koreeda wrote and directed this, and it won the top prize at Cannes, and was the Japanese submission for Best Foreign Language landing on the shortlist. A critical and audience success.
Let me just say right off the bat, that touching films about kids and families are not my cup of tea - just a taste issue. However, this is a really well done film, with very nice style of shooting that is intimate where it needs to be - the director has real talent. It was shot on 35mm. The acting is excellent throughout, the grandma and the kids are out of this world good. A story with a decent amount of subtlety, so not the usual tearjerker tripe such "family" films often are. The ending is gutsy and well done. I think it's worth your time, even if the genre is not something that strikes your fancy. It's a long film, but surprisingly it earns all its time.
Let me just say right off the bat, that touching films about kids and families are not my cup of tea - just a taste issue. However, this is a really well done film, with very nice style of shooting that is intimate where it needs to be - the director has real talent. It was shot on 35mm. The acting is excellent throughout, the grandma and the kids are out of this world good. A story with a decent amount of subtlety, so not the usual tearjerker tripe such "family" films often are. The ending is gutsy and well done. I think it's worth your time, even if the genre is not something that strikes your fancy. It's a long film, but surprisingly it earns all its time.