Miiku Sakanishi makes his feature-length debut with Memorizu. The writer and director’s drama opens with Yuta (Tasuku Emoto) discussing how long 60 days is with his young daughter. Why are they talking about that specific length of time? That is because Yuta is about to leave their urban home for the rural island of Kyushu to help his father-in-law, Makoto (Issei Ogata). Yuki (Moeka Hoshi), Yuta’s wife, cannot attend to her father’s broken leg due to work. So, after a long yet heartwarming farewell, Yuta is on the ferry and away from his family.
Once at Makoto’s, Yuta helps the elderly man run his studio photography business, as well as helping around the house. The man even takes his father-in-law to a funeral that he does not attend. While gone, Yuta keeps in contact with his wife and daughter through phone calls and video chats.
“…Yuta is about to leave their urban home for the rural island of Kyushu to help his father-in-law, Makoto.”
At its core, Memorizu is a look at the permanency of photography, the immediacy of technology, and the way both things bring people together. Sakanishi does not rush any development, nor does he force drama when it is not needed. The stakes might be small, but they speak volumes about love and human connectivity. The filmmaker allows the genuine likability of his characters and the natural charm of his actors to carry the weight of what’s happening. This turns out to be the right move, as the realism of what’s happening allows everyone watching to relate to at least one person and one story beat, if not more.
Emoto is brilliant as the soft-spoken and kind lead. He’s sweet yet projects a slightly sullen demeanor as the character misses his family. Ogata is just as great. There’s an immediate warmth and gentleness to him. Hoshi is lively and sweet, playing off her on-screen husband quite well.
Memorizu is elegant and cozy. While a hint of melancholy exists due to the wife and child’s absence, the root of the story lies in the gentle ways people want to connect and relate to everyone around them. This is a fantastic debut that heralds the coming of a naturally gifted filmmaker.
"…elegant and cozy."
