Two people from entirely different worlds sharing friendship and emotional intimacy. The story follows Marie-Lou (Virginie Efira), a care-home director, and Mari (Tao Okamoto), a theatre director with terminal cancer, after a chance meeting in a park that leads to them becoming fast friends.
I really enjoyed how intentional each conversation felt within scenes which allowed us to sit in those close moments.
A lot of this film is just the two of them having deep conversations about life, death, the work they do and the hardships of existing under capitalism, but I couldn’t help but feel washed with calm and serenity all throughout by the closeness of these characters.
The blossoming friendship between the two was so strong and deep that it draws you in the more you watch them interacting with each other. Not to disregard the amazing cast of supporting characters, especially Gorô, the actor in the one-man play that Mari was directing, and Sophie, an experienced nurse who served as a bit of conflict for Marie-Lou and her plans of implementing humanitude into the care home.
From a technical standpoint, there was some really clean blocking and some truly amazing shots scattered around this film of both France and Japan. That being said, there were a lot more shots of feet than anyone could’ve prepared for. Mari’s whiteboard breakdown on capitalism and her idealistic vision of what the future could be, knowing she wouldn’t be part of it, was a particularly poignant moment.
The performance by Tao Okamoto was amazingly heartfelt in every scene, not just this one. 196 minutes of patient humanity, and I loved it all - definitely recommend this to anyone. I think this type of film serves as a really refreshing experience in the current climate of the world.
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