Never
dismiss the characters of Hirokazu Kore-eda’s latest film just because they are
elementary school children. Unlike the
parade of hipster man-children audience see in indie after indie, many of these
youngsters will amount to something in life.
They are also facing some very real drama at a relatively early age in
Kore-eda’s unusually wise and gentle I
Wish (trailer
here), which
opens this Friday in New York.
When
their parents split up, Koichi decided to go with his mother to live with his grandparents
in Southern Kyushu. His younger brother Ryunosuke opted to stay with their
irresponsible garage-rocker father in the north. Always close, it is a difficult separation
for the brothers, but they think their respective parents need them more. Still, it seems to weigh more heavily on Koichi,
troubled to find himself not regularly fulfilling his duties as a big brother.
Koichi
sees potential deliverance in the imminent opening of the new bullet train
linking north and south Kyushu (completed in a mere fraction of the time needed
for the still unfinished Second Avenue subway).
Word has it that anyone standing on the exact spot where the maiden north
and south bound trains cross will have their wish granted. Koichi convinces Ryunosuke to meet him there
so they can both wish for their family to be reunited. Finally, a real world application for those “two
trains” math problems. Of course, it is
easier said than done. Arranging train
tickets and school absences without the knowledge or consent of their parents
will require caper-like planning.
As
a result, both brothers bring along their co-conspirator friends, each of whom
has a wish of their own. The way
Kore-eda draws out their distinct personalities and captures their subtle interaction
is a joy to behold. Likening Kore-eda to
Ozu is a danger critics often succumb to, but I Wish particularly lends itself to such comparisons. He coaxes some remarkably rich and grounded
performances from his youthful cast, placing them in situations of conflict
with one another, but harboring malice for none.
Real
life brother-performers Koki and Ohshiro Maeda clearly had an intuitive sense
of how to distill the essence of their own fraternal relationship and infuse it
into their on-screen roles. They are
smart, resourceful, and sensitive, but never in an overly cloying way. Frankly, I
Wish has a wealth of talented young actors, including the particularly noteworthy
Kyara Uchida as Megumi, one of the older girls Ryunosuke befriends (remember, his
dad is in a band). If, like her
character, her driving ambition is to become an actress, she should be well on
her way to a brilliant career.
