After the Storm (2016 film)

After the Storm
Theatrical release poster
Japanese	海よりもまだ深く
Directed by	Hirokazu Koreeda
Produced by	Kaoru Matsuzaki Akihiko Yose Hijiri Taguchi
Screenplay by	Hirokazu Koreeda
Starring	Hiroshi Abe Kirin Kiki Yōko Maki
Music by	Hanaregumi
Cinematography	Yutaka Yamasaki
Edited by	Hirokazu Koreeda
Production company	Fuji Television Bandai Visual Aoi Pro. Gaga
Distributed by	Gaga
Release date	May 18, 2016 (2016-05-18) (Cannes) May 21, 2016 (2016-05-21) (Japan)
Running time	117 minutes
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese
Box office	$5.3 million

After the Storm (海よりもまだ深く, Umi yori mo Mada Fukaku) is a 2016 Japanese family drama film written and directed by Hirokazu Koreeda. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival^[1][2] and was released in Japan on May 21, 2016.^[3]

Plot

Dwelling on his past glory as a prize-winning author, Ryota (Hiroshi Abe) wastes any money he makes as a private detective on gambling and can barely make ends meet or pay child support for his son. After the death of his father, his ageing mother Yoshiko (Kirin Kiki) seems to be moving on with her life with hobbies with the local elderly ladies. Ryota makes extra money by offering his own services to the detective agency's clients. He is offered a contract to write for a manga series with an upcoming artist but his personal ambitions get in the way. He finds his sister Chinatsu is visiting their mother frequently and suspects she is trying to sponge off her; he believes she makes their mother pay for her daughter's figure skating lessons from her social pension. His sister in her turn suspects Ryota's visits are for taking advantage of their mother. Ryota is trying to get back with his ex-wife Kyoko (Yoko Maki) and in a stormy summer night sheltered at his mother's home with his family he attempts to take back control of his existence and to find a lasting place in the life of his young son Shingo (Taiyo Yoshizawa). His ex-wife says it is truly over with them and grown-ups cannot live only with love, planning is required as well and Ryota isn't cut out to be a family man. If he were he would have done so earlier. Ryota understands and uses the storm as a chance to bond with his son by repeating a memorable experience he once had with his father sheltering in a local playground as the storm rages.

The next morning they resume their lives.

Cast

• Hiroshi Abe as Ryota Shinoda
• Yōko Maki as Kyoko Shiraishi
• Taiyô Yoshizawa as Shingo Shiraishi
• Kirin Kiki as Yoshiko Shinoda
• Satomi Kobayashi as Chinatsu Shinoda
• Sosuke Ikematsu
• Lily Franky
• Isao Hashizume

Production

Koreeda conceived of the film in 2001 when he visited his mother who had been living alone in a housing complex after his father's death. He started writing the screenplay in the summer of 2013.^[4] Filming began in May 2014 and lasted a month and a half, in between the production of Our Little Sister, which was shot throughout a year.^[5]

Reception

Box office

On its opening weekend at the Japanese box office, After the Storm was placed fifth, with 89,510 admissions.^[6]

Reviews

The film has a 94% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes,^[7] with the critical consensus stated as, "After the Storm crosses cultural lines to offer timeless observations about parental responsibilities, personal bonds, and the capacity for forgiveness." It also holds an 84/100 on Metacritic.^[8] Calling the film "a classic Japanese family drama of gentle persuasion and staggering simplicity", which is "beautifully balanced between gentle comedy and the melancholy reality of how people really are," Deborah Young of The Hollywood Reporter suggests the film is about how "you can’t always have the life you want, or be who you want to be".^[9]

Awards and nominations

References

External links

• After the Storm on IMDb
• After the Storm at Rotten Tomatoes