Hana

A young samurai named Soza lives in a poor district of Edo. His clan sent him to find and kill his father's murderer. The problem is that Soza cannot use a sword and does not want revenge. He stays in the district, teaches the children to write, grows close to the neighbours, and lives in debt. Eventually he finds the man he is looking for. That man is also living an ordinary life in the neighbourhood and has a family. Hirokazu Kore-eda inverts the samurai narrative. It shows revenge not as heroism but as an obligation imposed by the clan, and Soza's choice is the film's central matter. In the background it invokes the forty-seven ronin, the best-known revenge story in Japanese popular culture. Junichi Okada plays Soza and Rie Miyazawa plays his neighbour. The design of the district, in rain and mud, is the film's most striking feature. Who it's for: Viewers who like Kore-eda, period films, and narratives that break genre expectation. Who it's not for: There is almost no action and the pace is slow. Anyone expecting a samurai film will be disappointed.