watched-3's - Rented List
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I Wish (2011)Kiseki
In the wake of their parent's divorce, 12-year-old Koichi (Koki Maeda) and his younger brother Ryunosuke (Ohshiro Maeda, Koki's real life brother) have been split up against their will. Koichi lives with his mother and grandparents in Kagoshima, in the shadow of a constantly rumbling volcano. Ryunosuke lives a comparatively spirited life with his rock-musician father in Fukuoka. But when Koichi discovers that a new bullet train line is due to open connecting the two towns, he determines that the intense energy generated by two trains passing in opposite directions will work a miracle, and their wish to be reunited will come true. - Director:
- Hirokazu Koreeda
- Cast:
- Kôki Maeda, Ôshirô Maeda, Hiroshi Abe
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The Idiot (1951)Hakuchi
Akira Kurosawa's The Idiot - his only adaptation of a Fyodor Dostoevsky novel - was a cherished project on which it is claimed he expended more effort than on any other film. A darkly ambitious exploration of the depths of human emotion, it combines the talents of two of the greatest Japanese actors of their generation - Toshiro Mifune and Setsuko Hara. The Idiot is perhaps the most contemplative of all Kurosawa's work, a tone which is heightened by the unusual, trance-like performances. Kurosawa's electrifying dramatisation uproots the novel's Russian Summer setting to a memorable, snowbound Hokkaido - the northern-most island of Japan, closest to Russia in climate and custom. War criminal Kameda (Masayuki Mori), reprieved from a death sentence, is fresh out of the asylum, mentally fragile, and prone to epileptic fits. In turn, his emotional involvement with two women (Setsuko Hara and Yoshiko Kuga) and his new, increasingly volatile friend Akama (Toshiro Mifune) lead him further into madness and gross tragedy. - Director:
- Akira Kurosawa
- Cast:
- Setsuko Hara, Masayuki Mori, Toshirô Mifune
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The troubled life of French sculptor Camille Claudel and her long relationship with legendary sculptor Auguste Rodin are portrayed in this passionate biographical drama, featuring an acclaimed, Academy Award nominated performance by Isabelle Adjani. Beginning in the 1880s with a young Claudel's first meeting with Rodin (Gerard Depardieu), the film traces the development of their intense romantic bond. The growth of this relationship coincides with the rise of Claudel's career, helping her overcome prejudices against female artists. However, their romance soon sours, due to the increasing pressures of Rodin's fame and his love for another woman. These difficulties combine with her increasing doubts about the value of her work, driving Claudel into an emotional tumult that threatens to become insanity. - Director:
- Bruno Nuytten
- Cast:
- Isabelle Adjani, Gérard Depardieu, Madeleine Robinson
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