THE STORY – Sculptor Yoriko and her former sister-in-law Yuri reunite in the town of Nagi. During their visit, tensions build to the point of confrontation.
THE CAST – Takako Matsu, Kenichi Matsuyama, Shizuka Ishibashi, Kawaguchi Waku & Kiyora Fujiwara
THE TEAM – Koji Fukada (Director/Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 110 Minutes
Loneliness is an oft-explored concept in art. It’s only logical, as the act of creation is often a solitary one by nature. But there’s a difference between loneliness and being alone, as Koji Fukada’s new film “Nagi Notes” quietly understands. Emphasis on “quiet” – this is a movie that’s so understated that when one character is off-handedly described as seeming newly energized, it feels like a joke. Fukada uses the occasion of a reunion between two women to explore the different types of bonds people can forge, often with overlapping and intersecting intentions. Adapted from Oriza Hirata’s play “Tokyo Notes,” the relocated “Nagi Notes” is delicate and moving, wistfully leading to a conclusion that’s simple in execution but powerful in its emotional impact.
The pair of women at the center of the film is Yoriko (Takako Matsu) and Yuri (Kenichi Matsuyama). The former is an artist who lives on a farm, tending to cows and carving wooden sculptures. Yuri is her former sister-in-law, having divorced Yoriko’s brother, but the two women have remained close despite their formally severed familial bonds. Yuri has come to visit in order to model for one of Yoriko’s sculptures, but it’s clear that the visit isn’t just merely a case of a muse meeting with an artist. The pair have a strong connection, the kind that lets them jump right back into conversation after a decent time apart, as if they had merely paused talking yesterday. And these chats are far from surface-level, delving deep into their thoughts on their specific relationship and the grand nature of human interactions.
To a certain type of discerning viewer, their relationship may seem closer than just familial or friendly. In fact, early in the film, another character bluntly asks if Yoriko and Yuri are in a relationship. And although they aren’t, “Nagi Notes” allows what might in most stories to simply be a queer subtext between a same-sex pairing to be brought up as a possibility for the central characters. Additionally, their story is complemented by another couple that’s not really a couple, even though they may seem to be moving toward becoming one: two young men named Keita (Kiyora Fujiwara) and Haruki (Waku Kawaguchi). Eventually, the film allows their pairing to develop in a way that brings discussions of queer relationships to the forefront, and the generational differences between the two men and the two women further deepen the thoughtful thematic explorations of how humans interact and how these types of interpersonal links can shift over time.
But that’s not to say this is a fiery, passionately executed film. The world the audience temporarily inhabits is deliberately slow and soft. Nagi is a village filled with gorgeous scenery, and the town is so small that the daily radio bulletin makes a point to announce a death anytime one occurs. And in keeping with this pastoral energy, the characters are similarly reserved. Despite the screenplay’s lack of hesitation when it comes to featuring honest and even blunt conversations, the pitch of these chats is decidedly low-key. This makes for a calming watch, although the film is so muted and the performances so underplayed that specific, discernible characterizations aren’t easy to grasp.
To a city dweller like Yuri, it’s easy to mistake Yoriko’s unhurried, hushed existence for a pitiable state of isolation. But Yoriko feels otherwise: although she is generally alone, she’s not lonely, as that would require a sense of dissatisfaction with her life. She’s decidedly happy with where she is, least of all because she has the space and privacy to practice her art. On the other hand, the metropolitan Yuri clearly yearns for a connection like the one she reestablishes with Yoriko. Fukada isn’t shy in his unearthing of these themes; much like the queer aspects of the film, these heady, emotional topics are very much on the film’s surface. The two women’s methods of self-expression also reflect their respective fears and perspectives: Yuri is an architect, helping to build massive structures intended to be seen and used by multitudes. Whereas Yoriko’s sculptures live in her barn, as she expresses to Yoriko, not only is she at peace with the fact that, many years from now, her pieces will “rot and return to the Earth,” but this beautiful inevitability of being temporary is a source of satisfaction to her. Their differing views on their individual works reflect how they exist day to day. Although they’re both generally grounded, Yuri is clearly much more uncertain and quietly dissatisfied with her existential state than Yoriko.
Yuri’s stay – which she keeps extending far past her initial departure date – clearly becomes a type of unexpected therapy for her, as she comes to realizations not only about her relationship with Yoriko but about her own internal state. But as “Nagi Notes” shows, it’s not simply where you go that changes you; you have to do it yourself. As the saying goes, “Wherever you go, there you are,” and both in the ways that the two women deepen their bond and in how Haurki and Keita come to terms with theirs, Koji Fukada’s lovely film offers up unobtrusive but valuable lessons on the importance of accepting one’s reality while not shying away from reaching for what’s desired.
