Review by Eric Hillis

A Koji Fukada movie centred on a devastating incident involving a child and the burgeoning relationship between a quietly unhappy wife and a taciturn man who may not have her best interests at heart – haven't we seen this one already? While Fukada's latest, Love Life, shares some key plot elements with his masterpiece of misery, Harmonium, the two films couldn't be further apart in tone. Harmonium is a grim but rewarding film about the cruelty…

Sometimes, with family dramas concerning weighty matters like love, death, and abandonment, the film telegraphs where it’s headed, allowing the viewer to brace for that emotional destination and wait for the narrative to catch up. “Love Life”, from writer/director Koji Fukada, seems to do that, at first, but switches tracks and goes somewhere else entirely. And Fukada repeats that pattern of undercutting expectations and taking you to unexpected places throughout the film. The effect is that the audience can never…

“How long have we been doing this?”

Taeko longs for so much — acceptance, love, family — though she hardly expresses her desire. Her emotions demand to be heard, even as she struggles to embrace them. Her husband Jiro talks with his back turned, loving yet distant as he whispers into the back of her head. Their love is one unconventionally formed, and this unethical foundation has left them both unsteady. The film’s sign language conversations are distinct not only…