Evil Does Not Exist (2024)

Direction: Ryusuke Hamaguchi
Country: Japan 

Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy, 2021; Drive My Car, 2021), known for his ability to transform simple plots into impactful films, continues to impress with his latest work, Evil Does Not Exist, a sublime ecological fable marked by tragic personal consequences. What started as a collaborative audio/visual project with composer Eiko Ishibashi, became a relevant piece of narrative fiction about how threatened our ecosystems and existences are.

“Balance is the key”, claims Takumi, the protagonist of the film, portrayed by assistant director-turned-actor Hitoshi Omika. He is a single father and expert in trees and plants, living in a rural alpine region near Tokyo. When a shady company, discreditably represented by two talent agents, announces plans to build a glamping site in the area, Takumi and the local community raise concerns about environmental impacts.

Sculpted with vision and purpose, this uncommonly edited film warns us of the fragility of our planet as well as the greed plaguing our modern societies. The limpid and leisurely composed images are a pure treat for the eyes, exuding a heavenly sense of peace that contrasts with the imminence of danger. An impressive breadth of realistic investment doesn’t prepare you for the nearly surreal climax, in one of those finales that are not simply given but rather prompts reflection on both harmed natural environments and the volatility of human nature. 

There’s a lot to drawn from Hamaguchi’s directorial sensitivity given that it’s rare to see a drama that makes such subtle sense of its subject matter. True to his style, he solidifies his position as one of the greatest filmmakers of our times.

Drive My Car (2021)

Direction: Ryusuke Hamaguchi
Country: Japan 

This strangely affecting drama directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi produces a flash of quiet brilliance that resonates steadily throughout the engrossing three-hour session. Slowly mesmerizing, Drive My Car brings many rewards in what is an interesting adaptation of a short story by the Japanese writer Hakumi Murakami. Hamaguchi, who co-wrote with Takamasa Oe, modified it with cleverness and gave it extra depth by virtue of delicate gestures and a timeless grace. 

The self-aware and fluid storytelling is at the base of huge moments of cinema, bringing personal life drama and professional theater together, as we follow the sad path and ultimate liberation of Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima), a theater director and actor consumed by loss and guilt. This man lost his beloved wife (Reika Kirishima), a respected screenwriter, shortly after finding out she was betraying him with a younger actor, Koji Takatsuki (Masaki Okada). Two years later, the director takes the latter as his student during a residency in Hiroshima. Chekhov’s play Uncle Vanya is to be performed. Despite the painful memories this situation brings, he finds some relief in his competent new female chauffeur, Misaki (Toko Miura). She is a 23-year-old from a small village in Hokkaido with a complex past and a similar trauma to heal.

This is Hamaguchi’s 2021 double achievement, after having drawn attention with the anthology romantic drama Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy. Despite of the possible traps in the material, he was able to maintain a rigorously unsentimental tone here, and mounted each scene like a virtuoso of restraint with the assistance of cinematographer Hidetoshi Shinomiya.

The film won the Best Screenplay award in Cannes, a totally deserved accolade for setting an incredibly subtle example of cinematic virtuosity and poetry.

Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy (2021)

Direction: Ryusuke Hamaguchi
Country: Japan

This talky, almost action-less anthology drama film directed by the up-and-coming Japanese director Ryusuke Hamaguchi consists of three unconnected stories centered on female characters and their romantic dilemmas, choices, regrets, memories and feelings. 

It’s all quite captivating, even when something familiar is put in front of our eyes, as is the case with the first episode - titled Magic - in which a young model realizes that her producer and best friend is dating with her ex-boyfriend, whom she hasn't seen in two years. Despite that, will she act, moved by jealousy? If this is the most unexceptional story, the one that follows - Door Wide Open - is the most daring, mixing academic revenge and bitter romantic crush. Yet, the most extraordinary episode is the last one - Once Again - which, set in a technologically convoluted time, follows a woman who thinks she recognizes her teenage love when attending a High School class meeting in her hometown. All the stories’ conclusions are left open and shades of Eric Rohmer and Hong Sang-soo’s styles are detectable. 

Excerpts of classical piano music accompany this warming cinematic experience where apparently banal situations can lead to unpredictable outcomes. In a demonstration of grace and occasional wit, Hamaguchi reflects on the nonlinearities of love with an eminently companionable triptych that relies on engaging plots and a marvelous ensemble cast to succeed.

If you have a thirst for a pleasurable and quirky love story, this one offers you three refreshing gulps.