Tokyo Sonata
Tokyo Sonata
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Synopsis

From the director of Pulse comes this dark melodrama about a Japanese businessman (Teruyuki Kagawa) who loses his job and avoids telling his wife and sons. After many demoralizing interviews and days spent wandering, he takes a custodial job. When his lowly position is discovered by his family, the psychological shock pales in comparison to the bizarre burglary and kidnapping to come. Winner of a Jury Prize at Cannes. In Japanese with English subtitles. Kiyoshi Kurosawa---Japan---2008---120 mins.

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  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
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   | James#58

Lewis has written an excellent review of this film. I would only add that the final scene of this film reminded me of the mythical "Phoenix". The emotionless, in denial, authoritative structure of this family is reduced to absolute rubble and out of that rubble arises something new...Exactly what it is not entirely clear but its promise is clear from the final scene of the film which I watched over and over taking in just how wonderful it is.

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  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
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   | Lewis#4

Here we have a compelling portrait of a dysfunctional family in an increasingly dysfunctional society. After losing his job, Japanese salaryman Ryûhei (Teruyuki Kagawa) conceals his unemployed state from his family, heading off each morning, briefcase in hand, and spending his days in soup lines and employment agencies. Ryûhei deceives to keep up appearances. His two sons deceive to escape his patriarchal wrath. His wife Megumi (Kyôko Koizumi) deceives herself, playing the role of supportive wife and nurturing mother and pretending not to see the fissures in her home life. About two thirds of the way through the story this increasingly tense domestic drama lurches into unexpected violence (an abrupt and unprepared shift in tone and tempo that represents the only significant misstep in the film). In the course of a single night, members of the family are subjected, more or less simultaneously, to a kidnapping, a hit-and-run accident, an arrest, and, perhaps most wrenching, a devastating loss of face. For a while mayhem reigns. And then, perhaps equally unexpectedly, comes the film's quiet and healing coda. It seems that the younger son Kenji (Kai Inowaki playing a child wise beyond his years) has been secretly taking piano lessons--this has been strictly forbidden by the stern father--and it is Kenji, channeling Debussy, who sings this film to sleep. It is a kind of benediction, sans dialog, that seems to offer some hope for this troubled family. This magnificent film represents an interesting departure for director Kiyoshi Kurosawa, who has been known for his very well-made and thought-provoking horror films. It would be wonderful if he continued on this path.

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