Nagi Notes is a small, unhurried, and occasionally frustratingly straightforward movie that still charms thanks to its wonderful cast and sumptuous filmmaking.
It is the story of two women who were once sisters-in-law. The younger, Yuri (Shizuka Ishibashi), moved away to become an architect after her marriage failed. The older Yoriko (Takako Matsu) stayed in Nagi to sculpt and tend her farm. Now, Yuri has returned to get away from the city, to serve as a model for Yoriko, and to gain some perspective on her once-certain life.
Outsiders look at their relationship with suspicion. Some even suspect the so-called friends are more than they claim, while others can't fathom why anyone would stay close to family that isn't theirs. Even Yoriko's art students, Haruki and Keita, question this aspect of their teacher's life, especially as their own blossoming adulthood is just around the corner.
The things that happen in Nagi Notes aren't spectacular, surprising, or even notable in many regards. This is a small slice-of-life film where the great revelations are told through lingering looks or unspoken gestures that come naturally in intimate relationships. Even its structure is deceptive, as the initial calendar on the wall gives a semblance of episodic storytelling. Yet much of the story is adrift like its protagonists, and time in the countryside runs at a different pace than in the city.
I have a lot of love for movies like this. Last year, I was enamored by the quiet delights of Renoir and Blank Canvas, both equally muted films of limited scope but great emotion.
Joonatan Itkonen
Joonatan Itkonen
Nagi Notes belongs to this same category, even if it doesn't quite reach the same highs. At just under two hours in length, I found its pacing cumbersome, despite the lovely cinematography that captures the idyllic scenery of Nagi in all its majesty.
Director Koji Fukada emulates the meticulous nature of Yasujirō Ozu's films with great care, though I was happy to also see elements of Takeshi Kitano's wry humor in the mix as well. The uniformly tremendous cast handles the material with grace, especially in scenes where I'd wish the script said just a little bit more.
In the end, Nagi Notes provides just enough closure to say that it has told a story. But like all slice-of-life dramas, it offers only the barest sense of narrative structure. Like real life, there are no clear signposts when something momentous has occurred. We only know it was important decades later, after growing and changing as people.
I admire how director Fukada captures these uncertainties and vagueries with such honesty. I'm not certain if they translate to film successfully, but nothing in this life is perfect.
