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2004 Japanese film From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Taste of Tea (茶の味, Cha no Aji) is a 2004 Japanese comedy drama fantasy film written and directed by Katsuhito Ishii. Described as a "surreal" version of Ingmar Bergman's Fanny and Alexander (1982), it follows the daily lives of a family living in rural Tochigi prefecture, north of Tokyo. It was a selection of the Cannes Film Festival.[1]
| The Taste of Tea | |
|---|---|
The Taste of Tea poster | |
| Original title | 茶の味 |
| Directed by | Katsuhito Ishii |
| Written by | Katsuhito Ishii |
| Produced by | Kazuto Takida Kazutoshi Wadakura |
| Starring | Tadanobu Asano Takahiro Sato Maya Banno Satomi Tezuka Tomokazu Miura Tatsuya Gashuin Anna Tsuchiya Rinko Kikuchi |
| Cinematography | Kosuke Matushima |
| Edited by | Katsuhito Ishii |
| Music by | Little Tempo |
| Distributed by | Grasshoppa (Japan) Viz Media (USA) |
Release date |
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Running time | 143 min |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
The film follows the lives of the Haruno family, who live in rural Tochigi Prefecture, the countryside north of Tokyo. Nobuo is a hypnotherapist. He teaches Go to his son Hajime. Hajime becomes an excellent Go player, but he has a rough time with girls and puberty. Yoshiko refuses to be an average housewife and works on animated film projects at home. She uses assistance from grandfather Akira, an eccentric old man who is a former animator and occasional model.
Eight-year-old Sachiko periodically sees a silent, giant-size double of herself which mimics or benignly watches her. She contemplates ways to rid herself of it. Uncle Ayano is a sound engineer and record producer who comes to stay for a visit. He engages in inward reflection, seeks closure regarding an old relationship, and recounts a childhood experience—a tale that influences Sachiko and ties into later events.
The Taste of Tea has a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes[2] and a 77/100 weighted average on Metacritic.[3] It was also one of Ed Park's choices in the 2012 Sight & Sound critics' poll of the greatest films ever made.[4]
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