Japanese Story

This Australian film plays like a mirror image of Lost in Translation: it's set in the wide-open spaces Down Under rather than the crowded streets of Tokyo, and the fish-out-of-water visitor here is a Japanese businessman (Gotaro Tsunashima) rather than an American actor, who connects with a brassy female geologist (Toni Collette) shanghaied by her buriness partner into becoming the visitor's unwilling tour guide. But while Sue Brooks' picture, like Sofia Coppola's, starts out as a slight character study, Japanese Story eventually becomes far darker and more passionate, bringing a much more emotional reading to the themes of roads not taken and unfulfilled possibilities. It wouldn't be fair to reveal the precise turn the film takes in its final reel, but suffice it to say that what initially appears to be just a quirky cross-cultural comedy segues into a third act of surprising power. Much of the credit belongs to the two leads: Collette is likable even when being brusque and aggressive, and she makes a convincing transition to sadness and regret later on, while Tsunashima matches her with a performance that ranges from laconic rigidity to almost childlike abandon. Though the deliberate, elegiac style may irritate some viewers, the movie's fragile, ultimately touching tone will be just the ticket for others. Recommended. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary by director Sue Brooks and writer Alison Tilson, five deleted scenes with optional commentary (including an alternate opening), cast and crew “talent files” with text bios and filmographies, a photo gallery, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a solid indie film.] (F. Swietek)