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One of the most celebrated films of 2016, Ryota Nakano‘s second and last (until now) film won a number of awards, including ones for its female protagonists from the Japanese Academy, and was the official submission for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards.

Her Love Boils Bathwater is streaming on Jff Theater

Futaba is a single mother struggling to make ends meet after her husband suddenly left her and the family’s bathhouse business went under. While coming to terms with her situation, she is dealt another blow when she is diagnosed with terminal cancer. Instead of succumbing to despair, though, Futaba decides to tie all loose ends in her life in the few months she has left. This includes changing her daughter’s Azumi, composition, making her brave and not afraid to face her own fears and also finding a suitable man for her; tracking down her estranged husband,...

Can a dramedy outplay a film that takes a serious approach to the heavyweight topics, stretching far beyond the usual methods of emotional manipulation by reaching for the straightforward little truths as simple as they occur in life? The Japanese director Chihiro Amano might have found the right recipe in her fourth fiction feature “Mrs. Noisy”, starring Yukiko Shinohara and Yoko Ootaka as the neighbors from hell. The film had its world premiere at the Tokyo International Film Festival back in November where it took the audience by storm, and it continues its rather successful festival travel circuit, slowly conquering the European audiences.

“Mrs. Noisy” is streaming on Sakka Films

One of the biggest qualities of “Mrs. Noisy” is that it speaks to many people in its representation of mundane situations described in the script penned by the director herself. Having an annoying neighbor is something almost anyone knows about from their own experience,...

All eponymous women in Nobuteru Uchida’s fifth feature film are broken. They are not just broken, they are either devastated, oppressed, depressed, hysterical or monstrous. They are gathered under the collective noun “women”, defined and described by a man.

There is a lot of pathos to deal with in this Moscow International Film Festival main competition drama: theft and betrayal, psychological terror, a grueling parent, suicide, arrest, bullying, the pouring rain – it’s all there, set against the backdrop of the first Covid-19 outbreak in Japan, and to the melodramatic score composed by Kazune Tanaka. Instead of tissues, a cheese grater is required.

After failing to find a job upon graduating from the university of Tokyo, Misaki (Yukiko Shinohara) is stuck in her rural hometown with her handicapped mother Mitsuko (Atsuko Takahata). She endures a horrendous day-to-day abuse by the parent who maybe suffered a stroke which did impair her mobility,...

After working in an office for 5 years, Chihiro Amano turned to film and became a film director and screen writer. Her short and feature films, such as “The Confession of Figaro” (2012) and “Leap Year Girl” (2014) won several awards at film festivals both in Japan and across the world. Her most recent feature, “Mrs Noisy” premiered at the Tokyo International Film Festival. Takuma Nagao is a Japanese actor. In “Mrs. Noisy” he plays the writer’s husband. He is best known for his parts in “Our Little Sister” (2015) and “Being Natural” (2019).

During the Helsinki Cine Aasia Festival we spoke with both of them about black & white opinions, insects, the Japanese film industry and much more.

In the film, a lot of things happen because people only see each other’s sharp edges and not the complete picture, is this an important theme for you?

Chihiro Amano: At the beginning of the film,...

Can a dramedy outplay a film that takes a serious approach to the heavyweight topics, stretching far beyond the usual methods of emotional manipulation by reaching for the straightforward little truths as simple as they occur in life? The Japanese director Chihiro Amano might have found the right recipe in her fourth fiction feature “Mrs. Noisy”, starring Yukiko Shinohara and Yoko Ootaka as the neighbors from hell. The film had its world premiere at the Tokyo International Film Festival back in November where it took the audience by storm, and it continues its rather successful festival travel circuit, slowly conquering the European audiences.

“Mrs Noisy“ is screening at Cinemasia Film Festival

One of the biggest qualities of “Mrs. Noisy” is that it speaks to many people in its representation of mundane situations described in the script penned by the director herself. Having an annoying neighbor is something almost anyone knows about from their own experience,...

One of the most celebrated films of 2016, Ryota Nakano’s second and last (until now) film won a number of awards, including ones for its female protagonists from the Japanese Academy, and was the official submission for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards.

Her Love Boils Bathwater is part of the 2019 Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme

Futaba is a single mother struggling to make ends meet after her husband suddenly left her and the family’s bathhouse business went under. While coming to terms with her situation, she is dealt another blow when she is diagnosed with terminal cancer. Instead of succumbing to despair, though, Futaba decides to tie all loose ends in her life in the few months she has left. This includes changing her daughter’s Azumi, composition, making her brave and not afraid to face her own fears and also finding a suitable...