Plot: Makoto's career as a photographer isn't going too well. Then he receives a letter from his former girlfriend. She lives in New York now and she's made it as a photographer. She's preparing her first exhibition and Makoto is invited. He reluctantly accepts her invitation, but he isn't prepared for what he'll find in New York.
Watches
August 13, 2024
Few foreign directors do well on their travels to Japan, but the reverse isn't always that much better. Tsutsumi's Collage of Our Life is a pleasant exception, though the film isn't quite as impressive as I remembered it to be. The depiction of the US in particular is a bit bland and uninspired.
The performances are solid, with Matsuda, Koike, and Hirosue as obvious standouts. The plot holds enough surprises, the drama and romance elements are properly realized and the pacing is fine. I just didn't care so much for the simplistic and cliché way New York is shown here. It's an outsider's view, which begs the question: why did Tsutsumi even bother? Other than that, this is a fine drama.
April 23, 2004
[review pending]