Furusato

It's a bit risky to give an unqualified thumbs up to any film -- there are pros out there who could slice me and dice me and serve me for lunch. Nevertheless, this time I'm playing it straight. This was one of the greatest films in my experience.

I saw it once, probably in 1973, on impulse. I had seen and immediately appreciated the Samurai genre in the Japanese theater (since converted into a 5 or 6 plex ordinary commercial theatre) in San Francisco. The then-newer sword films, in color, were especially impressive. Seems to me "Diva" owes a lot to those movies, in terms of beautiful scenes, but it didn't really compare. Maybe "Un Coeur en Hiver" is a better example. Anyhow, I found myself quite sympathetic to the Japanese feeling and aesthetic, so I would often drop in, willing to see anything that theatre was screening.

"Home from the Sea" is not anything to do with Samurai or swords, no physical violence. It is a "simple" story of a contemporary family's livelihood, and a change in circumstances that industry and society imposed on them, destroying that way of life. The family's responses to the change were what made this film great (not that the cinematic craft wasn't superb!)

In 1970, director Yamada Yoji and many of his Otoko wa tsurai yo -colleagues took a break from the long franchise, and made "Kazoku" (Where the Spring Comes Late). That film dealt with the plight of the Japanese poor, and their difficulty in finding a living for themselves. In "Furusato" (Home From the Sea, 1972), Yamada returns to these themes, with almost exactly the same cast. However, this is not a sequel, or a prequel, because the characters have different names. Instead, this is a thematic sibling to "Kazoku", and for the most part, just as good.

The film depicts a vanishing way of life and an island, that slowly loses population because there is no work. Our main characters are a family that make a living by transporting rocks with their ship. This is hard, manual work, and because of the long distances, it really doesn't make much of a profit for the husband and wife team, played by "Kazoku" stars Igawa Hisashi and Baisho Chieko. They are looking for other options, but this might mean they have to leave the island, where their families have lived for generations. Also their marriage is not going too well because of all the stress.

My only problem with "Kazoku" was, that Yamada could not keep up the tone of the tragic film, but instead opted to have comedic relief every now and then, mostly in forms of cameos by Tora-san actors. This film also has those actors, but it does not feel like a novelty. Baisho Chieko and Ryu Chishu again turn in good performances, but I was most surprised by Atsumi Kiyoshi's great supporting role. He has a lot of heart and really made the film better with his presence.

Yamada is always nostalgic in his style, but in this film the nostalgia is brooding. The director manages to look at tradition both fondly, and as a burden. The film depicts the Japanese archipelago beautifully, and makes the audience sad about the cost of modernization. Yamada's stab at "mono no aware" is more heavy-handed than Ozu's, but he does make this a highly emotional experience, even if the lead characters aren't as well fleshed-out as in "Kazoku". This is one of his career high-points.

This movie has a lot in common with "Kazoku". However, it is different in both mood and meaning. Again, the narrative centers on a Japanese working-class family with its own difficulties and circumstances. But what the director conveys most clearly here is love (yes and no matter how it sounds). As simple and pure as in "Kabei Our Mother" and especially "Poppoya". It is expressed in the way Seichi and Minko love each other, their little boat, their family, their island and the sea. It is extremely satisfying to watch Seichi's fragility and passion for his craft unfold through toughness and assertiveness. Watch this film as the true story of two ordinary people, and you are sure to feel the same.