As far as the movie goes, I wouldn't say it's a good movie. Because the director lost a bit of himself in the film, he was too persistent in trying to present the loneliness depicted by Haruki Murakami, which made the film somewhat formalized, and the large amount of narration made me feel that the original narrative charm of the film image was lost. The director should be a book fan of Murakami, so he is too eager to realize his world, and lacks his own creation as a film director.
From the story point of view, the most straightforward presentation in the movie is loneliness, which is also mentioned repeatedly in the narrative. Tony is most afraid of it, but he has to face it. But where this feeling of loneliness comes from is worth thinking about. Haruki Murakami's reputation as a "post-World War II writer" is not in vain.
Japan underwent the Meiji Restoration in 1868 and modernized very quickly. After this period, a large number of changes in social systems and laws made the Japanese feel confused. They start thinking about their own identity. "What is my identity as a Japanese? How should I adapt to the society?" From 1890 to 1920, the trend of academic freedom appeared in Japan. In 1924, Japan experienced an unprecedented major earthquake. This blah blah blah confuses the Japanese about their identity. Feeling uncomfortable with everything that comes up. This also has a scene of Tony on campus. Politically inflammatory slogans were written on the walls of the campus, and students were talking about it all. Tony turned a blind eye, he cut himself off from all this, he was an island. Does he have an idea? He has. He believes that opinion is not important, what is important is precision. This is also his view on painting.
After his marriage, his wife has been unable to stop shopping for clothes. This is also a microcosm of Japanese society. After the war, Japan fully completed its industrialization and urbanization, and mass consumption began to sprout. Consumer society has become a trend. The Japanese are driving the economy through consumption, and they are also asking themselves how I should fit into this society.
The novel is a very good one among Murakami's works, presenting the issue of the appearance and identity of the Japanese people in different historical periods. But as a movie, it's not too surprising. Can only say that the work is flawless.
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