User reviews

Ah, such a beautiful film. Just saw it at the Dublin Film Festival, picked it somewhat at random, and did not regret it at all. If you want to have a break from all the noise around and want some peace and quite then this is the film to watch. There isn't much action here, just 3+1 sisters living their day by day lives. Although, the lives are not at all empty, you will find that there is quite a bit of love and pain, decisions big and small, regrets and forgiveness, but they are all expressed in rather subtle tones. And despite anything, you keep feeling that things are getting better and people are growing together rather than falling apart. Such a feel good movie. And, although it is set up in modern times, there is a good measure of tranquility of old Japan mixed in. Small town, old house, veranda into the garden, plum tree, and of course sakura. So all people and events are intertwined with beauty that is around us. Cinematography and acting are flawless. You just completely immerse into the film and are surprised when it stops. And of course, if you've ever been to Japan, there will be many moments that will bring good memories of this incredible place and culture.

"Our Little Sister" centers around four sisters, their lives and their relationships. It may look like a small, complacent, too slow and contemplative movie, but Koreeda, with the help of amazing acting all around, elevates the proceedings and delivers a really good movie.

Sachi, Yoshino and Chika are three sisters that have lived together for some years. Their father left, marrying again, and their mother run away, leaving them behind. The death of the father brings all of them to his funeral, where they meet their half-sister Suzu. Sachi, the oldest, offers Suzu go living with them, and Suzu accepts, the four starting to live together.

From that moment on the movie develops slowly, but securely, with great character development, a couple of very touching moments, and a focus on human relationships and the reasons behind our behavior. That Koreeda has restrained Haruka Ayase, charming Masami Nagasawa, happy-go-lucky Kaho and innocent but smart looking Suzu Hirose as the four sisters helps, as they embody their characters and bring them to life. The plot helps, with little vignettes that help develop the story and entice the viewer's attention.

The movie is a little bit slow, but you won't care, because what you will care about is these four sisters, their world, their problems and the relationship they have between themselves and with all that surrounds them. Great.

All the Hollywood directors producing one comic-book sequel after the other (and all other directors as well) should see this film, they should turn away in shame, and quit directing. Movie is largely seen as a medium to entertain, yet it could be so much more.

Watching this movie, in every scene, it is incomprehensible for a western viewer how it is filmed: There are only daily life scenes, nothing dramatic, yet it is such a heart-warming experience, a simple joy of watching people living their lives.

The story follows 3 very different grown-up sisters who live independently in a big house. The father has left them when they were little, and now they learn that they yet have another little sister. Soon their little dormitory has an additional guest. The main characters are the youngest sister who tries to adapt to her new life, and the oldest sister who is determined to live her life lead by strength and kindness.

Critics have compared Kore-eda with Ozu, because of his calm observation of life. Still, Ozu's films contain great sadness, while Kore-eda's movies ('Like Father,Like Son', 'Kiseki') are full of hope and joy for living. They show simple people trying to find happiness in life. It has a Zen-like quality: one doesn't need big dramatic events to show love and kindness, if you are looking close enough you will find it in the most ordinary things in daily life.

This is one of the best movies I've ever seen.

This movie is 128 minutes long and at the end i was hoping it could go on for two more hours. For me it is the essence of what cinema should be. Great story real characters and real life ! Just a few days before i was watching SW7 and thought it was an OK movie but while watching "our little sister" i was realizing how much better cinema can be and how bad most Hollywood blockbusters really are. I know its like comparing a Michelin star cook to Mc Donald's but when you tasted both you realize one is art and one is fast food. One you eat because you're hungry (bored) and one because it tastes great. This movie is art because it touches you in a special way ... not you ego but your humanity.

Compared to Hirokazu Koreeda previous movie "like father like son" the story is very loose sometime you even think there is none. You also get tricked by the expectations other movies force you to have by repeating the same motives over and over again. I'm not sure if this is intentional or the movie is just so different.

Like most Japanese or Asian movies there is some stuff that could be a little bit to slapstick and melodramatic for western viewers but that's a very small price to pay.

If you don't count anime "our little sister" makes it in my top 5 Asian movies of all time. I highly recommend it.

This is by no means a simple watch, but it's a hugely pleasant one. Our Little Sister is a perfect example of how a slow, calm and natural film can pull you in so much deeper than something big and loud, with fantastic performances, beautiful directing, brilliant dialogue and an emotionally impressive, but never melodramatic story.

The most striking thing about this film is the directing. It's all very understated, but the director is so brilliant at giving you staggeringly beautiful vistas of the countryside landscape of Japan. It never takes over what's happening in the story, but the way that the natural world is presented in this film is so special, and makes it an absolute joy to watch.

The performances are great too. Again, with a very quiet and understated story, the actors all do a fantastic job at providing interesting drama and engaging character development, which makes the slow pacing of this film feel almost invisible, as you're able to be pulled in so effectively by the very human, realistic performances, which was so impressive to see.

And that ability to create a realistic drama continues in the film's dialogue. The performances are all fantastic, but without the brilliantly-written dialogue, that feels so natural and real, this film may not have been as brilliantly engrossing as it is. Luckily, however, every line is so well-crafted, and fits so well with whatever's going on on screen, that you become totally immersed in this film as if you're right there taking part in these conversations.

This is effectively a 'slice of life' drama, where we're not getting an over-the-top, cinematic melodrama, but one that just peers into some people's lives, and makes a compelling story out of it.

That's true for a lot of the film, and I definitely enjoyed following the brilliant plot here, but if there is one complaint that I do have with Our Little Sister, it lies within the way the story is told. Understated films are fantastic, and shouldn't be overlooked, but in this film, I felt as if it was just a little too quiet in its opening stage to get you fully up to speed with what's going on.

Don't get me wrong, the calm nature of the film is beautiful for the most part, but for the first twenty minutes or so, I did feel a little lost with the characters' various backgrounds and relationships due to little early exposition, which made for an occasionally frustrating watch at the beginning.

Overall, however, Our Little Sister is a wonderful film, and it uses understated drama in a brilliantly realistic and immersive way, helped further by great performances and fantastic directing.

The source material (manga) is masterfully adapted into a 2 hour film. Excellent cast, direction, cinematography, everything in it (Kamakura is such a beautiful place)! I fell in love with all the characters (I specially liked Midoriko Kimura's role of the Cafe owner)..

Everything in this movie feels so real, and lively. But also filled with emotions. And the theme and general feeling (what you take with you once done) is quite heavy, even if it is something simple we can all understand. I love the kind of stories that put a smile on my face, even if I felt my heart being tugged a bit. You can see the love that was put in it by everyone involved.

Would easily recommend to anyone.. specially to those that sometimes just stop to realize they are alive.

Greetings again from the darkness. Movies don't frequently begin after the most disruptive drama has already occurred. However, such is the case with director Hirokazu Koreeda's adaptation of Akima Yoshida's graphic novel "Umimachi Diary", the source material for this tale of sisterly love formed by tradition and some unfavorable circumstances that are "nobody's fault" (a recurring theme).

Three adult sisters live together in their large family home, and have done so for many years – since their father left for another woman, and their mother, unable to cope, abandoned them. Sachi (Hanuka Ayase) is the oldest and self-burdens by carrying the most responsibility. Yoshino (Masami Nagasawa) and Chiko (Kaho) are quite a bit more care-free than their older sister, but this non-traditional family unit functions with traditional meals served within the walls of their traditional house.

The sisters attend their father's funeral where they meet their half-sister Suzu (Suzu Hirose), who they invite to come live with them. The small town community of Kamakura provides a quaint and beautiful backdrop for the film … which has plenty of personal drama (what would you expect from 4 sisters?) but lacks the high drama that cinema usually heaps on screen.

We easily get to know each of the characters, and how they deal with being a product of their past, while hoping not to repeat the mistakes of their parents. Although "death" is seemingly everywhere, this is mostly a story about appreciating life and beauty – and the strength that comes with a family bond.

The acting is superb throughout, and director Koreeda's camera work is understated and complimentary … except for the moments when it's breathtaking – the Cherry Blossom tunnel, for instance. The look and feel of the film is quite tranquil, but emotions are constantly stirring – whether at a local diner or harvesting the family plum tree for this year's plum wine. It's little wonder that the film was so well received at Cannes Film Festival, and for those who enjoy a less-thunderous approach to cinema, it should be quite a pleasant two hours.

This is a small film about small things. No sweeping statements, no deep emotions, no spectacular events. It's about the lives of three sisters in their twenties, who live in a large, old wooden house, and their fifteen year old half-sister Suzu whom they invite to live with them. Nothing more, nothing less.

But behind the seemingly simple story is a series of unpleasant events from the past. The father of the three sisters has left his family to start a new life with another woman - the mother of Suzu. The heartbroken wife who was left behind couldn't cope with raising the three girls alone, and left them as well.

All this is revealed little by little and bit by bit. 'You realize this is the daughter of the woman who has ruined the family?', asks the great-aunt of the three sisters when she hears that they have invited Suzu to come and live with them, after the death of their father. But the arrival of Suzu subsequently seems to erase all unpleasant memories from the past.

The film is a tribute to traditional Japanese values like respect, harmony and forgiveness. Although they are quite different, the sisters respect each other and lovingly include Suzu into their lives. It is also a film that breathes tradition: the sisters live in an old, traditional Japanese house, they eat traditional dishes like home- made noodles, and regularly they go to a small traditional restaurant. At one point, they all wear traditional yukata's. And of course, there is a scene featuring the cherry blossom - the essence of all things Japanese.

It's all filmed in an extremely tasteful and elegant way by director Hirokazu Kore-Eda. Comparisons with Yasujiro Ozu (the maker of Tokyo Story) are quite appropriate. But the uneventfulness of it all got a bit on my nerves. The older sister has trouble with her married boyfriend, the middle one gets promoted at her job, and little Suzu makes a goal at a soccer game - that's about as exciting as it gets.

"Our Little Sister" is a simple, beautiful little film. It focuses on a small scale - a bunch of sisters who decide to start caring for their little half-sister after meeting her at their father's funeral - but the characters are universally relatable. It deals with themes of family, love, childhood, dealing with change, and human connection. If anything, this is a very human film.

The cinematography is gorgeous, but subtle and subdued. The film goes along with a slow pace, but this helps it focus on the great beauty of the small moments in everyday life. Although the slow pace of the film make take some time to get into, all the characters feel lovable but flawed by the end. All of the performances, including child actors, are spot on. The slow build up has major payoff because the sentimentality of the film doesn't feel forced or exaggerated. These emotional moments are played pretty straight, and they all work immensely well.

The film is simultaneously a coming of age story for the youngest sister, Suzu, and the oldest, Sachi, although it focuses on each character enough to feel emotionally attached to each one. Even most side characters are given a good degree of depth.

This is a beautiful family film that doesn't just focus on the effect of family, but finding your own family. It's about solidarity with the people one loves despite everything that each person has gone through (or is going through).

When their estranged father dies, three sisters decide to take in their younger half-sister to live with them in Kamakura, despite the fact that she is the daughter of the woman who wrecked their parents' marriage.

Koreeda seems intent on paying homage to Ozu here. The rhythms of family life are laid out in detailed scenes on cooking, funeral rituals, and memorial services. The more traditional landscapes of Kamakura, including heavily foregrounded cherry blossoms, feature prominently. And nothing much happens, which is the film's most damaging failing. Sachi (a one-note Haruka Ayase) seems content with her married lover. Any conflict she may feel over her situation is buried deeper than the audience can see. Yoshino, exuberantly played by Masami Nagasawa, always picks the wrong guy, ending up broken-hearted and out of pocket. A possible redemptive story line with an under-used Ryo Kase is left unexplored. Kaho may or may not have a romance going with her boss (we never find out). And the waif taken in, Suzu, (a charismatic Suzu Hirose) knows more about their father than any of them, but merely hints at complexity, and never mines it.

Shinobu Ohtake shows up as the recalcitrant mother about an hour in, bringing brief hope that her appearance might bring about a volatile mix. The situation, however, is snuffed out as quickly as it flares up, and we are back to wistful looks off-camera and bike rides through softly falling cherry blossom petals.

Koreeda faithfuls Kirin Kiki and Riri Furanki show up in roles that are practically cameos, unfortunately reminding us that Still Walking and Like Father, Like Son are so much more powerful and complex.

This is a light, delicately observed film, so much so that it is too slight and so simply floats and vanishes rather than takes root. Like Air Doll this is, unfortunately, simply Koreeda in an indulgent moment.

The story about sisters lived in Kamakura. It starts that the father of three sisters dies. Then, they know the father has youngest sister, Suzu, whose mother is different from theirs. Suzu needs a place she can be, so she moves to a house that three sisters live. Four sisters have each trouble such as love and work. Also, they think about other sisters very much. Some people don't like this movie or they are bored because the logical development of this movie isn't clear and the story advances slowly. However, I was sympathized about the feeling of each sister and I was moved to tears by their love. I have a sister and two brothers, so I did more than others. In addition, the atmosphere of Kamakura is good and fits with this slowly movie. You wants to go to Kamakura if you watch this movie.

This movie has all the elements to be a perfect Japanese movie usable for a Wstern audience. We have a story about tree sisters living alone in a traditional house facing everyday problems like many Ghibli productions, trains in the mountains, funerals as in the "Departures", little restaurant and cherry blossoms. However here we have an opposite narration compared to the movies of Ozu that made us fall in love with that absolutely Japanese simplicity as well unexpressed depth of emotions inside them. In other words, the beginning of those black and white masterpieces was one of familiar tranquility. A tranquility then threatened and finally restored. Let's think to "Tokyo Monogatari" in which at the end the old mother went back to the village where the younger daughter waits for her. Or the old father giving her daughter as spouse to another house at the end of "Sanma no aji". So there the key was finding the harmony. Like the regular sound of wood made by a bamboo fountain in a Japanese garden. Here in "Our little sister" we start from a situation of familiar disorder and in the end nothing changes so much. The hardships of the three sisters remain the same. Sachi, the older one, still leads all the house and the garden by herself. Yoshino, the lovable middle one, still looks for a new boyfriend whit out stopping the habit of drinking alone. Chika, the little one, still date with his naif boyfriend. But in the middle of all this something happened. They accepted in their lives the young sister Suzu, born after their father divorced. This young girl brought to their life a moment of happiness as well hope to going on to what they were doing. Suzu didn't change their life. Is not what can be called "a familiar earthquake". She should be compared nothing more to a blow of spring wind refreshing the house of the three sisters. This is another great difference from past production. We don't have strongly deep feelings. The sisters lives the joy of everyday. Somebody criticize Koreeda for this aspect accusing him of making a movie of good atmosphere and not of emotions. However family has changed. Japan has changed. The three sisters here stands for the contemporary Japan with low birth rate and feared by the earthquake of 2011. A Japan concerned more to what is going on today then to what can happen tomorrow. So we find ourself on the other side to the society growing fast, sometimes too much, in the Ozu's productions where smoking chimneys made their comparison a lot of times. The end show us this idea more clear. The four girls looks over the sea on a shore while speaking about their future without having great expectations. We find no more girls waiting for their boyfriends while practicing on surf as in Kitano's "A scene at the sea". A masterpiece filmed in the highest economic welfare of Japan of the late 80es. In Koreeda's movie we find contemporary girls simply hoping their everyday life can be as always was until then. With hardships but also joy. Without concerning too much about past,that is to say family and father, and future,or marriage and work. Paradoxically a contemporary return to the simplicity of "mono no aware". The medieval Japanese aesthetic principle of enjoy what is short-lived. As the cherry blossoms. As the windy teenage pureness of Sachi. The little sister that brings happiness.

Like so many foreign films, this is devoid of special effects, tiresome action sequences, gratuitous sex and violence-- just a lovely little gem that truly makes you feel at its conclusion like you were immersed in another culture for awhile. You forget that these people are actors-- it's more like watching real sisters in real life. One also comes away wanting to visit rural Japan-- it was refreshing to see more of the countryside as opposed to the large cities with all the congestion and crowding. All in all, if you are looking for a movie that leaves you feeling all warm and fuzzy at its conclusion, look no further-- "Our Little Sister" is an excellent film and I highly recommend it!

Based on Akimi Yoshida's josei manga 'Umimachi Diary', 'Our Little Sister' is a women-centred, Japanese chick-flick.

Adult sisters Sachi (the serious one), Yoshino (the sexy partying one) and Chika (the comedy relief one), abandoned by their father when they were just small children, live in the large, old house turned over to them by their mother when she too abandoned them as teenagers. Although men feature in all their lives, it is to each other they are most loyal.

One day comes news that their estranged father has died, and the three sisters travel to attend his funeral. While there they meet their step-sister, thirteen year-old Suzu, product of the affair that led to their father's desertion. Suzu's own mother has also died, and on impulse the sisters invite her to live with them. The film then follows the quartet over the next several months of relationship troubles (Sachi), work troubles (Yoshino), boyfriend-wanting-to-climb-a-mountain troubles (Chika) and mixed-sex football (Suzu).

It's all very feel-good: Suzu, for example, exhibits none of the stroppiness one would usually associate with a teenaged girl, docilely doing what she's told by Sachi (who in real life would very much be the target of "You're not my mother!"-type teenage flounces) and easily making nice, well-behaved friends at her new school. Meanwhile, Sachi and her estranged mother reach an understanding, and even the death of a close friend is portrayed as life-affirming, with much talk of cherry blossom and beauty. And the soundtrack is always waiting, ever-ready, to pounce with surging strings at moments of great emotion (of which there are many).

But feel-good is not necessarily bad. If you want to watch a film that isn't in any way challenging, with engaging performances, signposted plot developments and a little humour - in short, a film to relax to - you could do worse than this.

One of the sweetest, most uplifting movies I've ever seen. I kept expecting some horrible tragic occurrence to spin the the plot in a we've seen a thousand times, but instead it remains a gentle and affirming movie from beginning to end, while never becoming saccharin. I cannot recommend this movie enough, especially if you've had a bad day and need to watch something uplifting

The adaptation of a graphic novel to film may seem more easily attainable than other media, it can still suffer from the same problems. Hirokazu Koreeda, with his attention to details, did a marvellous job with this film. I noticed many cabiria- movements throughout the film, I suppose mimicking the movement of the reader's eyes.

Koreeda was also a good fit for the subject of the story, his last film Like Father, Like Son also handled relations between reunited family members. This time the most defining aspect is the role of the female in Japan, still a very paternalistic country, yet as the film shows they have no difficulty living on their own. Every film is an image of its time and Our Little Sister shows that times have changed, this case for the better.

The cinematography was very beautiful, to the point were I would recommend trying to watch Our Little Sister on the big screen. The long-shots of natural views are breath-taking. Furthermore, the script and the film feel very precise, no doubt the outcome of Hirokazu Koreeda writing the screenplay, directing and editing the film.

And I even admit this was boring and nothing happens etc. Etc et c et cetra I mean reviews talk about almond eyes but that is all we see and yes when Ayase san and any Japanese woman is concerned that in and of itself is enough but man give us more you can give us more you can give us so much more but you deny us... where is the story, the Ayase (more of her), the Suzu, the action, the love??? Nowhere So refuse to honor the disappointment and the withdrawal and the allocation and the ALMOND...

I am not going to say boring because Ayase chan is never boring but you know what I am saying right?

And also I rule the Wiki page for this so buzz off newcomers.

The Japanese film Umimachi Diary was shown in the U.S. with the title Our Little Sister (2015). Hirokazu Koreeda directed the movie.

Haruka Ayase plays Sachi Kôda, one of three young-adult sisters living in a home owned by their mother. The other sisters are Yoshino, played by Masami Nagasawa, and Chika, played by Kaho. These actors look enough like each other to be sisters, and they are realistic characters. Each has her own personality, and, like any three people living together, they squabble.

Their mother has abandoned them 14 years ago, so Sachi has been both mother and sister to them. As the movie opens, we learn that their father has died. The sisters go to the father's funeral, and meet their half-sister Suzu, who is portrayed very well by the young actor Suzu Hirose. She is their father's daughter, but she is the daughter of his second wife. He has married a third time. Now, she is an orphan, although her step-mother could provide for her. Instead, the three sisters invite her to come and live with them.

The remainder of the movie is a calm reflection of Suzo's integration into the family. She actually knows their father better than any of the three older sisters, because she was with him from her birth until his death. So the older women ask her for more information about the father. Information about ancestors is important to the Japanese, and we see this theme repeated throughout the film.

The movie was interesting to me because there was no fiery revelations, no scenes of caustic criticism, and no horribly sad moments. We follow the women through two years of life, and we get to know them and care about them.

I learned the some facts about Japanese culture that I didn't know. For example, the spiritual importance of cherry blossoms, and the ritual of making plum wine.

The acting was uniformly excellent. All the sisters are attractive in a low-key way. Haruka Ayase, the oldest sister, has been described as one of the most beautiful women on the planet, and I think this is true. However, what is striking about her in the movie is her calm, competent, dignified presence. She looks intelligent and caring, which is what her role calls for.

This is a movie worth seeking out. We saw it in Rochester's excellent Little Theatre. It won't work as well on the small screen. Still, It's an outstanding movie, Don't miss it.

Just at the very end of 2015 I saw, in my opinion, the second best movie of this year (1. Loin des hommes; 3. Phoenix).

After Still Walking (2008) and Like Father, Like Son (2013) Our Little Sister (2015) was the third movie that I saw from director Hirokazu Koreeda. Each time Koreeda did almost the same thing and then again not really the same thing. But the bounds between one or two families are each time the principal basis on which he delivers his masterpieces. I am in love with his work because you can get very emotional after watching his movies. I also like the quiet camera-work. You are getting at ease after watching so many other movies with fast camera-work. And the beautiful and spirited music gives the movie a magic two hours of admiration and awe.

MY FAVORITE LIST OF 2015 of the new movies that I have seen at the cinema (what strikes me is that there are no English spoken movies in my top 5): 1. LOIN DES HOMMES; 2. OUR LITTLE SISTER; 3. PHOENIX; 4. COMING HOME; 5. THEEB; 6. BRIDGE OF SPIES; 7. SICARIO; 8. LA ISLA MINIMA; 9. A MOST VIOLENT YEAR; 10. RAMS; 11. YOUTH; 12. WHIPLASH; 13. EVEREST; 14. RELATOS SALVAJES; 15. SON OF SAUL; 16. THE LONGEST RIDE; 17. THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.; 18. GOOD KILL; 19. SPECTRE; 20. THE MARTIAN ...