Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Harmonium (Fuchi ni tatsu) (2016)

I admit that I kind of fell asleep in the first third of the film. I was really tired, but it was also just really slow. These Japanese films really love their deep silences. And this isn't a bad thing. It intensifies the drama. I just wasn't really in the mood for that type of movie yet. It picks up a little in the second half (you'll know exactly when the demarcation is), but it still moves at quite a slow pace. It is a very sad story, and the emotions are only exasperated by the speed at which we experience them. It is a slow burn and the actors marinade in the fire.


It is a very sad and poignant movie. It is left open ended which is a little frustrating but I can understand why that had to be done. What I don't understand is why it is titled Harmonium. The Japanese title is not Harmonium, but rather "Stand on the Brink." That harmonium plays a relatively minor part in the film, but it is given outsized importance by the title. And why not any other instrument? A more common one perhaps, rather than a variation on a piano. 

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