Ripples (Sazanami)

Running time: N/A

US Premiere Inako is a young woman, leading a lonely life in a contemporary Japanese town, who finds work checking natural water sources for her uncle's company, the local government representative. She is often visited by her widowed mother, who frets over the upcoming ceremony to honor her father's death, and by her other insistent, matchmaking relatives. In the midst of this, Inako finds solace hiking through the countryside, creating her own experiments. That's where she meets Tamamiza, someone who shares her interests and who may provide an escape from her dreary isolation. Their tentative relationship, however, is met with disapproval from her family, and the sudden appearance of a letter from Inako's father-whom she assumed long dead - only serves to widen the rift between the Inako and Tamamiza. Ripples is the remarkable third film by Japanese director Nagao Naoki. In a rigorous yet graceful style that evokes cinematic master Yasujiro Ozu, he expresses the feelings of the characters not through their words but through rich compositions and landscapes that celebrate the beauty of Japanese culture. The result is a visual and poetic feast that will resonate with you long after. - Fernando F. Croce