{"id":17647,"date":"2023-07-25T22:50:20","date_gmt":"2023-07-26T02:50:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cinemadailyus.com\/?p=17647"},"modified":"2023-07-25T22:50:20","modified_gmt":"2023-07-26T02:50:20","slug":"japan-cuts-j005311-two-lifeless-entities-collide-and-give-birth-to-a-miracle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemadailyus.com\/?p=17647","title":{"rendered":"Japan Cuts: J005311, Two Lifeless Entities Collide And Give Birth To A Miracle"},"content":{"rendered":"

The JAPAN CUTS: Festival of New Japanese Film<\/a> has reached its 16th<\/sup> edition, and is showcasing at Japan Society from July 26th<\/sup> until August 6th<\/sup>. During this occasion a variety of remarkable motion pictures will celebrate the Land of the Rising Sun.<\/p>\n

One of these films is the unanimous Grand Prix winner at the 44th<\/sup> Pia Film Festival \u2014 the kermesse that claims to be the first ever film festival in Japan \u2014 and was also part of the 35th<\/sup> Tokyo International Film Festival. The movie in question is J005311 <\/i><\/b>written, <\/i><\/b>directed, and starring Hiroki Kono.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The unusual title of the film is not a secret code or the plate of a car. It actually is connected with the world of science, when two dead stars fused together and gave birth to a new star<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The luminous spheroid of plasma called J005311 \u2014 10,000 light-years away in the constellation of Cassiopeia \u2014 caught the attention of astronomers for the way the individual celestial bodies had burnt their supply of hydrogen during their lifetime, but once their remaining particles collided they came back to life. This is exactly what the film portrays in its quiet and measured way of progressing. It is a story born from two souls loitering in the dark.<\/p>\n

We grasp a day in a life of two desolate souls. We are first introduced to Kanzaki (Nomura Kazuaki), who goes out into the city with a forlorn look on his face. He tries to get a taxi\u00a0 <\/span>but doesn\u2019t get in. He then witnesses how a thief, Yamamoto (Hiroki Kono), snatches a purse. Kanzaki seems to have found the man for his mission, and asks Yamamoto to drive him to a certain location for an exceptionally high fee. The young burglar accepts and their journey together begins.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The beauty of the film is the way it proceeds by subtraction. In a time when we are overwhelmed by the chatter, Hiroki Kono decides to go against the flow. The dialogue is minimal, the lines throughout the entire film are very few, as is the action, and yet it speaks to audiences in an astonishingly eloquent way.<\/p>\n

J005311<\/i><\/b> marks Kono\u2019s directorial debut and very well captures the loneliness of our era and the way people wander without finding a place to belong. The lucky chance of meeting the right person with whom there is no need to explain your turmoil, who can be there for you even for a fleeting moment, can be life changing. Sometimes in life it is easier to confront the pain with a stranger, who can bring a fresh understanding and a new perspective on our existence.<\/p>\n

Science would define this as the Chandrasekhar Limit, i.e. the threshold that makes life possible<\/a>. Kono\u2019s take on they way our spirits can traverse a slow fade to black, yet still hold the possibility of a renaissance, provides a cinematic Big Bang effect.<\/p>\n

Final Grade: B<\/p>\n

Check out more of Chiara\u2019s articles<\/a>.<\/p>\n