Love Life is a 2022 drama film written and directed by Koji Fukada. Set in contemporary Japan, the film is inspired by the 1991 song "Love Life" by Akiko Yano, originally released on the album of the same name in 1991. In 2000, the singer Hitomi had released an eponym album on AvexTrax records. It revolves around Taeko and her husband Jiro facing "love" and "life".
The film was selected 'In competition' section of 79th Venice International Film Festival, where it competed for Golden Lion award and had its premiere on 5 September 2022.
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Synopsis
The film follows a married woman, Taeko, who lives happily with her husband, Jiro. She decides to care for long-lost Park, father of her son Keita, when Park reappears deaf, ill, and homeless.
Cast
Fumino Kimura as Taeko Osawa
Kento Nagayama as Jiro Osawa
Atom Sunada as Park Shinji, Taeko's ex-husband and Keita's father
Hirona Yamazaki as Risa Yamazaki, Jiro's ex-girlfriend
Misuzu Kanno as Akie Osawa, Jiro's mother
Tomorowo Taguchi as Makoto Osawa, Jiro's father
Tetta Shimada as Keita Shinji, Park and Taeko's son
Mito Natsume as Yoko Kondo, a staff member who works in the same place as Taeko
Release
The film had its world premiere at the 79th Venice International Film Festival on 5 September 2022, and competed for Golden Lion in 'In competition' section. It was released in Japan on 9 September 2022, and held its North American premiere at 2022 Toronto International Film Festival in 'Contemporary World Cinema' section on 12 September 2022 at Scotiabank Theatre, Toronto. MK2 Films have taken the distribution rights of the film for Europe in February 2022. It also made it to 'A Window on Asian Cinema' section of 27th Busan International Film Festival and was screened on October 6, 2022.
Reception
On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 85% based on 13 reviews, with an average rating of 6.50/10.
Guy Lodge of Variety wrote: "While it's impossible not to be affected at some level by its characters' hellish plight, the predominant softness of tone here tends toward the wispy." David Ehrlich of IndieWire graded the film with B+ and wrote, "An enormously poignant melodrama told at the volume of a broken whisper, Kōji Fukada’s Love Life represents a major breakthrough for a filmmaker who's found the perfect story for his probing but distant style."
