His most recent film, the Cannes bowing sisterly drama Our Little Sister (originally titled Umimachi Diary), has tipped the sickly sweet scale too far for some but, for me, Kore-eda's balance of chirp and melancholy ended up immensely satisfying.
Three sisters, abandoned by their mother after their father left her for another woman, reluctantly attend their father's funeral only to find they have a younger sister, with whom they promptly take pity on and invite to live with them. She accepts; pity turns to love, and together the reunited sisters set about healing their deep-set emotional wounds.
Our Little Sister is a slight but perceptive drama bound together by affecting performances from the entire cast. Kore-eda's approach is tied intrinsically to his muted camerawork. The film's energy flows from the women's collective performances and for the most part it is an exercise in unashamed joy.
The film's real beauty though is in its yearning for connectedness. Each of the women is seeking, consciously or sub-consciously, for a link to the past. Familial memory flows down through sensory experience: shared views, plum wine preparation rituals, eccentric meals served in seaside restaurants.
Kore-eda's quiet insistence that our present is informed by waves of love from the past is touching. That these waves also carry resentment and potential unpleasantness is also moving, especially as the sisters gradually come to terms with the realities of life.
If there is a gripe, it is that the film struggles to contain itself. Kore-eda presents countless fades to black that could have worked as a satisfying end to his film. Yet it is difficult to hold that against him when every time the drama returns, within moments, he has you by the heartstrings all over again.
A beautifully rendered drama that delights on all fronts.
★★★★
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