The Harimaya Bridge

I'm an American living in Tokyo, and I'd been waiting for this movie to come out. It's gotten a lot of buzz since last year, so I was very interested in seeing it. Fortunately it more than lives up to the hype. It's a very beautiful and moving film, and I can't recommend it enough.

The story concerns an African-American man who hates Japan, and who has a rift with his son when the son decides to come teach English here. The son dies in an accident, and the father must come to Japan to retrieve his son's artwork. The film follows the father as he learns to come to terms with his son's death, and as he discovers things about his son's life in Japan.

What's remarkable is how much this movie plays in many ways like a Japanese film, even though director and writer Aaron Woolfolk is an American. I read in an interview that he once lived here and returns to visit often. I guess Japan has really rubbed off on him.

I wonder how this film will play in America. It might be regarded as a little slow. And I certainly don't mean "slow" in a bad or boring way. Actually, THE HARIMAYA BRIDGE moves much more rapidly and with more energy than your typical Japanese drama. But I can see some of my countrymen with their MTV-influenced attention spans not being able to put up with the reduced pace of the film. Which would be a real shame, since much of the film's beauty and artistry comes from its pace.

Nonetheless, I think the movie is a great achievement. Especially since this is Woolfolk's first full-length film. The outstanding writing and the inspired direction go hand-in-hand. This is one of those movies where you feel like you're getting true insight into the filmmaker's mind, heart, and soul. Moreover, the acting, the camera work, and the music are all top-notch. The story is something new and fresh. And the message of the film is really wonderful. All of these things add up to me giving THE HARIMAYA BRIDGE my highest recommendation.

"The Harimaya Bridge" is an exceptionally well-conceived, impeccably written and brilliantly directed piece of cinematic excellence.

At the core, "The Harimaya Bridge" is about choices, impact and love.

There are many things to appreciate (and learn from) about this film; from the directing, to the cinematography, to the writing.

Writer-director-producer Aaron Woolfolk's direction and keen eye for dialogue reminds me of John Sayles' masterpiece "Lonestar."

"The Harimaya Bridge" is incredibly smart and sharply-written with just the proper amount of precision required without being superfluous.

Mr. Woolfolk has also produced a picture-perfect and stellar cast.

What's witnessed, is a birds-eye view of everyday people, in everyday life, and how they cope with its travels and travails.

Like a fine piece of Egyptian fabric, Mr. Woolfolk has carefully interwoven the story lines at a steady pace that kept me extremely interested - so much so that when it was over, I wanted more.

Any student of writing, directing or producing will appreciate this film and, like myself, will use it as a guideline and blueprint for what future directors (and writers) should (and need) to aspire to.

Hariyama Bridge is a film about love, deeply ingrained racism and forgiveness all wonderfully filmed in Kochi, Japan.

The story follows a father, Daniel Holder (Bennet Guillory) who learns of his artist sons death in Japan. Daniel is a man who has a personal, deep seated dislike of the Japanese, nonetheless sets off to Japan to try and recover his estranged sons paintings. While in Japan he learns some surprising things about his sons life that force him to confront his feelings and change his future.

Whats nice about this movie is that it doesn't spend a lot of time on the tired theme of "a fish out of water", meaning that Daniels first arrival in Japan isn't spent on how out of place foreigners are in Japan and how unusual Japan can be. There is just enough camera work to show us that Daniel is indeed in a different world and what beauty there is to be seen.

What also is fresh about this story is that racism is spoken of, upfront and very clearly in a country that rarely admits that such things exist. At one point Daniel's helper Yuiko hints toward racism even amongst the Japanese themselves and how her life was altered because of it.

Some people may find the film slow going. Those that have lived in Japan will certainly not want to miss this. I myself have lived in Japan for more than 18 years and find the film all too real. Glad someone finally touched on a rarely seen topic.

Even without knowing in advance that filmmaker Aaron Woolfolk was heavily inspired by the legendary director Akira Kurosawa, something about his debut feature called to mind films by Kurosawa like Dreams and Rhapsody in August.

It's nothing on the surface of the screenplay that can be quickly interpreted or discerned. It's something much more subtle and nuanced that comes through in the very natural pacing of the story and the sensitive development of its characters.

But it also seems to come through in the deeper level of attention that Woolfolk, like his cinematic inspiration, pays to the sumptuous rural settings chosen for this film that reflect the Japan of old through modern eyes, as opposed to the country's more often seen urban environs.

All this, however, isn't meant to suggest that Harimaya Bridge, Woolfolk's first feature, is a flawless masterpiece. It isn't. But it is a very masterful directorial debut that is often as visually stunning as it is emotionally stirring.

With a fantastic cast that includes Ben Guillory (The Color Purple), Saki Takaoka (Midnight Diner), Misa Shimizu (The Sea is Watching) and the famed Danny Glover (also the film's producer), The Harimaya Bridge is a densely layered portrait of the extended human family. And it touches on a complex variety of themes, including romantic and familial love, bigotry, loss, sorrow, discovery, tradition, and the unexpected bridges that can lead us to redemption and forgiveness.

It has a beautiful story which slowly captured my attention. I had never felt the Japanese were friendly towards Americans, especially after hearing stories form uncles who fought the Japanese in WWII. In this story Mickey a young American finds a world where he is accepted and loved as he teaches art to his students.

After Mickey's death his father, who acts rudely to the very accepting Japanese, arrives in Japan to acquire the belongings of his son only to find more than he was prepared to find.

The actors were exceptional, with a small part for Danny Glover! Hard to believe that this movie hasn't gotten more Awards/recognition!