Maborosi

A lovely, quiet meditation on grief and questions with no apparent answers. Yumiko suffers a tragic loss and appears to move on. She has a family, her beloved neighbors, and a sense of peace about her. But a visit to a place from her past reveals she still grieves her loss and cannot reconcile the reasoning behind it. And she is has grief from another great loss that is visited upon her in her dreams. Kore-eda's first film after being known more for documentary work is an impressive debut as a dramatic film director. The camera is kept at a distance throughout most of the movie. Often it is far removed from the characters. This is done to create a greater sense of emotional expression that doesn't depend on using close-ups of crying faces to express the character's feelings. There's great respect for his characters as they reflect the lives of actual people who must find their reasons and purpose for living each day. 3.4 stars

Beautiful cinematography, but extremely slow with many long shots that seemed to go on and on. Many reviews say the main character was happy and in love with her 2nd husband, but I don't agree. She cared for that man, but was not in love with him, and not reconciled with her 1st first husband's suicide (if it was such) even at the end of the film.

Promising premise, but nothing really happens, not even any real drama. It's just a series of subdued and at times bleak set pieces that don't really go anywhere.

The delicacy with which Kore-eda approaches the theme of mourning is masterful. The depth that "Maboroshi" reaches with its natural simplicity is an exemplary proof of the talent and sensitivity of an author who from then on will be considered "the modern Ozu". From Ozu, in fact, he inherits the de-dramatization structure and the narrative ellipsis; but Kore-eda is also influenced by the approach to cinema of the Taiwanese Nouvelle Vague, particularly Hou Hsiao-hsien's work and the aesthetics of its intimacy. The protagonists move in the surrounding environment with a light and cautious step, as if suspended in the void, creating a subdued and melancholy ethereal world. The very few close-ups help to keep a discreet and gentle look on the characters who wander in a time and a space that seem to be the border between life and death. A parable about the frailty of time, which is realized, for example, in the allegorical figure of an alarm clock and a light bulb on a table, which is a perfect example of "mono no aware" (物の哀れ), the Japanese aesthetics that enhances the "pathos of things", or rather, the "empathy toward things". The dignified suffering is a muffled scream lost on the open sea.

I saw this movie in 1995 and It was the worst, there's a scene that nothings happens for what it seems to be ages. I love fine cinema, however this movie is just a waste of film.

My favorite movie, I've watched it countless times. I'm a big Ozu and Fellini fan, and consider those two the best- but in Maborosi, Kore Eda matches them. It took years to fully appreciate this film, which goes very deep. This remains the most beautiful film I can think of, some scenes just jaw dropping in beauty and sensitivity. I've seen most of Kore Eda's films, and this, his first, beats them all. Stunning and sensitive, yet a portrait of ordinary life in most ways.

As other reviewers have noted this is a very visual, artistic sort of movie. Not much character development or plot, more like snippets of life. A "tone poem." Beautiful to look at, but ultimately not very engaging. Very art house.

Koreeda's first movie feature outside documentaries and one that put his name on the map. A couple have a child, then the father kills himself. No one knows why. She is grieving until she meets a new man, but she never really manage to shake it off and she seem very affected by her history. She just is, nothing else. Is the new guy the right choice? Does she get the needed support? Are her kid all right? There are many hidden questions here - as the film it self also is hidden. It's very, very slow. Few emotions, few conversations. It reaches the one hour mark befor we see her face without a distance. I have seen quite a few film's from the man. They are alway something special, but I like his newer films way better. This one was too boring with few scenes and while the images are lovely, the score is good and the plot is OK the whole ting fails to grip me and I miss hights or big scenes. I may hve picked the wrong night, but this is my least favorite from the man. It's like he kind of needed to makes this film to become the great director that he proved himself to be when he entered the millennium, as they all have a peculiar style - even if this one never really stand out as something unique for me. 5 out of 10 crab fishers.

Beautiful cinematography

Has some great Themes and emotive value although sometimes the plot can jump around a bit too much for a complete story