It's Hirokazu-eda who is both a writer and a director, and both are excellent. "Walking On" was written and filmed by him. I haven't read the original book yet, I believe that with the delicacy and affection of Japanese novels, it must not be bad.
It is Hirokazu-eda's film that is fresh to the core, even the cruel theme of "Nobody Knows" is full of this flavor, not to mention other works. Freshness can beautify life, such as "Haijie Diary", or it can show cruelty, such as "Nobody Knows".
It is Hirokazu-eda's films that are also gentle. They also like to use long shots, but they show the taste of life, and then record the tenderness of the years. Without the dignified atmosphere of the historical sense of Yasujiro Ozu and Yoji Yamada, there is more feeling of a small life. Ozu and Yamada record the big history, while Shire likes to write down the personal time of a few years or a dozen years.
It is Hirokazu Kore-eda's films that are very life-like, especially this "Never Stop Walking". He depicts ordinary life quietly, but shows the whole picture of life. Reunited with family members, trivial and lengthy conversations, subtle closeness and estrangement among relatives, often disagreements and embarrassment, and a family that is still warm even so. It is like every time we ordinary people gather with our relatives, watching Abe Hiroshi and Natsukawa Yui in the movie... Looking at them, it reflects our own.
Life is a gorgeous robe full of lice. Sometimes it is the play under the flowers of crape myrtle in summer, sometimes it is the embarrassment of accidentally saying inappropriate words, the scars of life are tormenting us, but all conversations will continue, and all embarrassment is temporary. This is the relative. This is home.
I like the ubiquitous little details in "Walking On" so much, the way everyone speaks, the carefulness in grasping the atmosphere, the perfect transition of expressions, and the various moments that make people laugh at the family members, Hirokazu Kore-eda is just right in this movie Grasp the serious and the lively, the happiness and the sadness. This makes the film very emotional and expressive.
The acting skills of Hiro Abe, Nozomi Kirin, Yoshio Harada, and Yukiko Jiangyuan are very good. As for the photography that uses filters from beginning to end, the beholder sees the difference, and the wise see the wisdom. Some scenes are still worth noting, such as the scene of sweeping the tomb and descending the mountain. Several people are walking slowly from the right side of the screen. Such scenes have the comfort and longevity of life in line with the movie. Of course, the most notable is the empty lens that Hirokazu Kore-eda used, and the interest in the blank space is also full of aesthetics.
After watching this movie, you may feel a little relieved about life. If you can make your own life into a movie, it may be so beautiful. Of course, let it be Hirokazu Koreeda to shoot.
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