Koki Maeda in a scene from the film I Wish about separated brothers wishing for a family reunion. Picture: Rialto
JAPANESE filmmaker Hirokazu Koreeda's work is a languid law unto itself. And long may it be so if he can continue to present such beautiful gems as his latest production, I Wish.
This heartbreaking drama is the story of two young brothers Ryunosuke and Koichi (real-life siblings Ohshiro and Koki Maeda) who live hundreds of kilometres apart.
Ryunosuke lives with his deadbeat dad, a washed-up indie rock tragic. Koichi stays with his hard-working mother and grandmother.
Word reaches Koichi of a new bullet train that will theoretically bring him closer to the brother he misses. But Koichi wants more. He wants his whole family reunited as one.
The two children hatch a plan that involves making a wish at a geographically precise point on the new railway line.
This may sound like a sappy, even pretentious conceit for a film, but I can assure you it is not. Koreeda's films are alive with both intricate eye for detail and a feel for all-embracing emotion that cannot help but take you in.
I Wish [G]
Three and a half stars
Director: Hirokazu Koreeda (Nobody Knows)
Starring: Koki Maeda, OhshirT Maeda, RyTga Hayashi, Cara Uchida, Kanna Hashimoto
All they want is to get a family back on track
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