I go with my Unitarian group to the movies on the second Saturday of the month, and this was the perfect movie to see with them, given that we’ve been discussing ‘spiritual practice’ recently. Every day of Hirayama’s life is a spiritual practice, as soon as he opens his door and looks – really looks- at the sky. His job is very humble, cleaning public toilets, but he takes pride in his work. His life is very ritualistic and ordered, right from the sound of a woman sweeping the street outside, through to his lunchtime and taking one photo per day, through to his dinner at the same restaurant, and closing the day with reading on his tatami mat by the light of a single globe. A whole other, previous life is hinted at when his sister comes to collect her daughter but it is left unexplored. I had just seen Groundhog Day the Musical the week before, and there is certainly repetition of day after day in this as well. It’s certainly slow, and probably 15-20 minutes too long, but it’s made me think about finding meaning and beauty in the small things that I encounter each day. I enjoyed this a lot, and I’ve thought about it many times since.
My rating: 4/5 stars.
The Resident Judge of Port Phillip 