Bâbâ Yoshino

I just saw this film at the Newport Beach Film Festival. Right from the opening scenes I was hooked. The acting was exceptional, which is necessary for a

naturalistic comedy like this to work. Of course, the key element of all great comedy is truth. And the comedy lies in the subtlety of actions, personalities, and words and actions that are humorous because they are true. But what is

the point in summarizing comedy? It never sounds funny that way. The story

itself is an allegory; a stranger comes to town, an outcast in a place where every boy has the same haircut, trimmed by a woman, the title character, whose

haircuts are tradition. The outsider refuses to conform, until finally a group of boys accepts him into their group. These are fifth graders, just beginning to realize their manhood, as well as the world around them. The whole thing

probably runs deeper than I am aware of, being that the film is Japanese, and I have very little knowledge of Japanese culture. The Japan of the film is not the sleek metropolis of Tokyo. Rather, it is a small town where everyone knows

everyone else. By the end of the film, we have come to know the characters so well that we find ourselves almost knowing what is going to happen next, which makes it all the more humorous, for these characters are, of course, human like us, and what is life but the reality of the absurd?

In the village of Kaminoe, it's idyllic, quiet, everything looks quite normal. Except when you realize a quirky trait amongst the little boys - all of them are sporting this bowled hairstyle! And I mean ALL the boys! At first it looks quite cute, and the movie too, until suddenly, you start to question if this is something taken to the extreme. With the arrival of a new kid from the outside, sporting totally hip, dyed hair, herein lies the perfect catalyst for impending change, or is it?

On the surface, it may look like a children's story, with the group of boys befriending this new kid, and having a sort of peer effect on him to get his hairstyle changed to fit in, of course much to his reluctance. On the other hand, this individual's appearance in town made the boys rethink their norms of maintaining their hairstyles, no thanks to one of their moms, the matronly looking Yoshiko (Masako Motai), whose barber shop dishes out the standard hairstyle for all the boys in the village.

But like a recent Chinese movie Little Red Flowers, Yoshino's Barber Shop works at a deeper level as well. While children and folks not wishing to use their noodle can still enjoy the saccharine sweet storyline, episodes and admire the cinematography, those who wish to delve just a little bit deeper, will find a social commentary from writer-director Naoko Ogigami, on traditions and customs that we hold on too, despite their irrelevance in today's society. When questioned and challenged, those who hold these traditions dear, will nonetheless find it preposterous for someone else, especially from the younger generation, to question those customs. Sometimes when things are done in rote, or for the sake of doing, the rationales behind the festivals and tradition, will be lost in the hullabaloo of celebrations.

At times the movie did feel a bit slow moving, but it provided the space for additional, deeper thoughts. The finale was complete with wicked, dark humour, but it addressed the desires of youth quite aptly, with their wanting to be cool, and innate streak of rebellion inside to always want to challenge the norms, as that equates to being cool.

If you enjoy movies with kids playing the leads, then Yoshino's Barber Shop will rank up there with Little Red Flowers, in tackling similar adult themes in what seems to be a made for children's movie.

Plot: A small town in rural parts of Japan where life is simple as every other town except for one thing - all the young boys living there have the same pudding bowl hairstyle, a tradition passed down from generations to generation to ward off a demon. Things get unusual when the arrival of an outsider shakes things up in the community. Ive lost count of the amount of times I have Recommended this film and it's finally available on YT. The themes this movie explores such as Traditions vs Modernism, conflict between generations, rebelling against Status quo, Sexual liberation. It's all there, it does so beautifully, and the presentation is so light-hearted and non-committal that it never gets pushy. This is without a doubt one of the best coming of age along with Tomka and His Friends (1977), Little Red Flowers (2006), Moving (1993), it has good acting and an interesting plot that keeps you hooked to the screen throughout the film. The level of performance delivered by our young cast is in no small part due to the people skills of director Naoko Ogigami. On an overall scale, A very fine film well worth your time - you won't be checking your watch for one moment, such is the quality and of the seamless screenplay, direction and performances. Check out the Naoko Ogigami's other movies, you can watch at any time and it will leave you feeling good.