Yakusoku (1972) Reviews

• Think of it as 'Brief Encounter', but with criminals

  rainbird1311622010-10-12

  To the accompaniment of an instantly memorable score that sounds a little like something Dave Grusin might have conjured up from the same early 70's period, an attractive middle-aged woman (Keiko Kishi, Robert Mitchum's love in 'The Yakuza') sits alone on a park bench watching the world go by - children at play, couples arm in arm strolling past. At the end of the film we'll come back to this scene & understand its significance but after this bewitching opening we're on a train journey along the coast of snowy, northern Japan. Onboard is the mysterious woman we've just seen in the park. A young man joins the train & tries to engage her in conversation. It transpires that the woman is on the way to visit the grave of her recently deceased mother. Accompanying her is a stern faced older woman whom she enigmatically refers to as 'My guardian.' When two cops bring a handcuffed prisoner on board & we flashback to a shot of Keiko herself in handcuffs we begin to get a sense of what's going on. But there's more than one offender here & as attraction between the pair begins to grow the stage is set for a tragedy that will take us back to that sad & lonely woman in the park. This largely train set romantic thriller, famous in Japan if largely unknown outside of it, won't win over the impatient viewer but for those who can cope with films that emphasise character & mood over plot, this melancholy, consistently engrossing study of two societal outcasts who connect builds to a knockout emotional punch & offers the pleasure of two terrific performances. Much of the appeal is due to Keiko Kishi's fabulous performance as the woman with a secret. Watching a smile flit across her face only to see it replaced almost instantly by one of sadness, to watch the young man (Hagiwara Kenichi, excellent) in his awkward, boyish enthusiasm trying to win her over, or to see her struggle with his offer of escape when their train is halted by a landslide, is both compelling & heartbreaking. Although performance-wise the film is basically a two-hander there's notable support from Yoshie Minami in a near wordless turn as Keiko's guardian, one who watches the growing friendship between the young man & her charge with silent disapproval. The Rendezvous is greatly aided by Saito Koichi's direction, a loose limbed, New Wave-ish approach that utilises long takes in real locations, hand-held camera, jump-cuts, what looks like lots of sequences shot in low/natural light & often drops the accompanying sound in favour of the score. The snowy locations are an appropriately bleak setting. The mood here is not unlike Jean-Pierre Melville at his most fatalistic & melancholy. Indeed, this Japanese film has a distinctly European vibe. Of special note is the wonderful score by Miagawa Yasushi. A great pity there's no soundtrack release because if more movie music fans were aware of Yasushi's score, presented here in a variety of arrangements from lushly emotional to trendy urban chic, they'd be snapping it up. It's a very memorable melody. 'The Rendezvous' really is the kind of film Criterion or Masters of Cinema should pick up. No doubt they've been trying. Perhaps it's the inevitable 'rights issues'? At any rate, if you can find it (and it's only currently available from Hong Kong suppliers in a scratchy full frame crop with basic English subs) highly recommended. It's not just a sad love story with a wonderful performance from its luminous leading lady, it's downright haunting.

• Strangers on a Train.

  morrison-dylan-fan2018-04-22

  Taking part in a 70's viewing challenge,I started gathering titles to view. Interested in seeing an obscure Japanese title from the decade,I asked fellow IMDber ManFromPlanetX for recs,and I told about a film that I was advised not to read about before viewing. View on the film: Slithering up to the women on the train, Ken'ichi Hagiwara gives an incredibly unsettling performance as "Burglar",that keeps the film on-edge for the whole the run time,due to Hagiwara's spider-like flinching making it unpredictable for when he will spin out. Attempting to remain silent as Burglar tries starting a conversation,Keiko Kishi gives a redefined performance of "Woman on parole",whose nervousness is held with great delicacy by Kishi. Spending large parts of the film in silence, Kishi and Hagiwara use incredibly subtle changes in face and body language to cast across the faces of the duo of them each entering the others personal space. Stealthily wrapping round the film with a heartbreaking scene on a bench, the screenplay by Shirô Ishimori, (inspired by an earlier work from Ji-hyeon Kim)makes the journey as rewarding as the destination, with the underlying psychology of the Thriller giving a tension to the characters. Peeling open events that led to Burglar and Woman on Parole meeting on the train,Ishimori balances the flashbacks giving background info on the plot,and an emotional depth, from what Burglar and Woman decide to withhold from each other. Backed by a haunting score from Miagawa Yasushi, director Kôichi Saitô and cinematographer Noritaka Sakamoto give their train journey an incredible earthy atmosphere of extended takes snapped by jump-cuts, elegantly-held close-ups on Woman on Parole's face,and a shining water colour palette. Taking great care over the placing of the couple, (and the "Supervisor" watching over them)Saitô masterfully uses symmetry shots to subtly match the couple up on their brief encounter.