Director: Riota Nakano | Japan | Fiction | 2012 | 74 mins
Film source: Fortissimo
A moving but surprisingly light-hearted and quirkily humorous study of family and death. Sawa, a long divorced mother of two complex, angst-ridden teenaged sisters, sends her daughters on a cross country trip to capture a photo of the face of their estranged father who they barely remember and who is now dying of cancer. She is determined to laugh in his face, even if it’s only in a photograph. He has long since remarried and has a new family that they also don’t know. What starts out as a sort of mini-adventure, becomes a journey of self-discovery, reconciliation, growth and coming of age. The two teenage actors are wonderful and portray memorable character traits that carry the film through its brisk 74 minutes. Of particular charm and interest to a Western audience is the girls’ mature and practical attitude towards their dead father. This film will appeal to adults and teenagers alike.