Suzaku

Naomi Kawase's first feature is set in the mountain villages of Nara. A railway line to connect the village to the wider region has been discussed for years; a tunnel is dug, then the project is cancelled, and the town's future closes at that moment. The film watches the Tahara family inside that closure. Kawase came from documentary and it shows in every frame: long takes, natural light, almost no exposition. The tension among the family is never stated, only carried in looks and silences. Its best-known passage is the scene in which the father's eight-millimetre footage is watched; the camera records the villagers' faces without comment. The film screened in the Directors' Fortnight at Cannes in 1997 and won the Caméra d'Or, making Kawase the youngest director to take that prize. Who it is for: viewers who like slow Japanese cinema, rural stories and observational form. Who it is not for: anyone wanting event or explanation, since the film is almost entirely atmosphere.