Miwako Fujitani Movies

Wim Wenders' sprawling cyberpunk noir epic -- shot in no less than nine different countries -- is set in 1999 and stars Solveig Dommartin as Claire, a young Frenchwoman who comes into contact with a large sum of money stolen during a bank heist; in her travels she picks up a mysterious American hitchhiker (William Hurt), who himself steals some of the money before parting from her company. Upon discovering the theft, Claire sets out on his trail, with both a Hammett-styled German private eye (Rudiger Vogler) as well as her former lover, a novelist portrayed by Sam Neill, in tow. The hitchhiker is really Sam Farber, the son of an underground scientist (Max Von Sydow), and his mission is to travel the globe in order to acquire the funding necessary to develop the technology which will allow his blind mother (Jeanne Moreau) to "see" visual recordings of her family members; the second half of the film takes place largely in the Farbers' compound in the Australian Outback, where Sam, Claire and the others take refuge while attempting to bring the sight project to its fruition, in the meantime pondering earth's future in the wake of a nuclear disaster in outer space. Wenders' most ambitious film to date, budgeted at $23 million, Until the End Of the World is also among his most seriously flawed efforts -- despite a keen sense of cultural perception, a fascinating sci-fi take on life in the near-future and stunning Robby Muller cinematography, the picture never quite gels. Much of the blame seems to fall upon its distributors -- upon its wide release in 1991, the movie was drastically cut to a running time of 2 1/2 hours, resulting in a disjointed narrative that doesn't shift gears so much as grind them as the action moves from country to country. Still, while a three-hour version, issued on laserdisc in Japan, comes closer to realizing the full scope of Wenders' epic vision, rumors of a five-hour director's cut -- said to have been screened to thunderous applause at a handful of film festivals -- continue to persist, suggesting that a masterpiece may well exist here after all. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide

This is a probing tale set in turn of the century Japan, involving three people trapped in a complex relationship of love and friendship. Daisuke (Yusaku Matsuda) is supposed to be out looking for a respectable job and equally respectable wife. He is 30 years old and devotes his attention to music and literature; his family is wealthy and can support his interests. When his friend Hiraoka (Kaoru Kobayashi) returns with his wife Michiyo (Miwako Fujitani), problems arise. Hiraoka, not the best-tempered person in the world, has just lost his job. His wife Michiyo was once in love with Daisuke and when the two see each other again, their old feelings surface. Michiyo is not really happy in her marriage to Hiraoka, but Hiraoka, who condemns Daisuke's unwillingness to work, was once his best friend. Should Daisuke choose to keep Hiraoka's friendship and the respect of his society by ignoring Michiyo -- or rebel and go after her? ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Based on the experiences of director Kaneto Shindo's sister, this docudrama follows the life of a young Japanese woman given in marriage to a compatriot living in California, as repayment on a debt. When the woman arrives, she is desperately homesick, although her farmer-husband is kind and understanding. She endures, raises four children, and along with her family, faces the humiliation of forced incarceration in a Japanese internment camp in Arizona while the family simultaneously loses their property and has their assets frozen. After the war has ended, her son returns from his tour of duty in a Japanese-American unit that fought in Europe, and she does her best to survive continuing crises, such as the death of her husband in an accident and a family move to a new town. Her nostalgia for Japan does not disappear, and when her children marry mainstream, non-Japanese Americans, it is not an easy change for her to accept. Director Shindo has faithfully rendered the experience of this woman in context, yet his treatment is somewhat distant and stiff -- more formally Japanese than casually American in approach. Whether consciously taken or not, this approach may prevent viewers from getting emotionally involved in the heroine's many difficulties -- even with the excellent interpretations of the lead actors. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide