Taka (Yota Kawase) is a lovely man, looking after his elderly, demented uncle in a rural region and spending his free time playing his bongos and whistling sentimental tunes. When his uncle dies, his cousin grudgingly allows him to remain in the large family home and even offers him a job, working at his cousin's local fishing pond. Taka is happy, and life is good, until a couple from Tokyo move with their young daughter to the village, with a dream of creating a teashop complete with their organic, natural and absolutely delicious food offerings. But they need a place in which to open their shop, and the beautiful old home where Taka lives seems the perfect place indeed.... I don't want to say too much about this film, except to note that what seems for much of the movie to be a quiet slice-of-life story becomes, later on, something very, very different. I like films that mix up various genres because they almost by definition cannot be formulaic, and "Being Natural" is a terrific example of this. The first film my husband and I have seen at FantAsia 2018, we're off to a great start!
Plot summary
Takashi Uno (Yohta Kawase, RUBBER'S LOVER) wants little more from life than to play the bongo under the starlight. When his uncle passes, his freshly divorced cousin inherits their traditional country home and tasks the shy slacker with caring for it. Together with the town's underdog grocer, the three revert to a joyful childhood dynamic. Leisurely BBQ (the cheapest beef!) and cup noodles, it's all fun and games until a family from Tokyo led by an unhinged patriarch (screen veteran Kanji Tsuda, JU-ON: THE GRUDGE) and his enigmatic wife (Natsuki Mieda) manifest their desire to open a countryside café at all costs. Tadashi Nagayama - a protégé of the Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival since his 2017 Grand Prix-winning debut JOURNEY OF THE TORTOISE - baffles audience expectations at every turn with this mellow yet thoroughly eccentric pastoral comedy about the right to do nothing, Japan's growing urban-rural divide, and the country's ongoing nuclear anxieties.
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