Riaru: Kanzen Naru Kubinagaryû no Hi
2013 / 127m - Japan
Drama, Sci-fi
3.5*/5.0*
Real poster

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May 16, 2014

3.5*/5.0*

An interesting genre-bender from the hands of Kurosawa. Real is a thriller/mystery with light drama touches, but there's also a bit of sci-fi and horror in there to make it all a tad less expected. And Kurosawa does a solid job. Like most of his films, the presentation could've been a little tighter, but if you're looking for something a little different, this one fits the brief.

Koichi and Atsumi are a couple that have known each other all their lives. They are good together, but one day Atsumi tries to kill herself and ends up in a coma because of her suicide attempt. Koichi is clueless until he learns of a new method called "sensing" that should allow him to contact the minds of people who are in a coma.

Films that don't reveal their (plot) structure right away always get extra points for effort, it's especially nice for a more mystery-oriented film. The performances are good, the film kept me guessing until the finale and even though not everything works equally well it was nice to see Kurosawa play with different genre influences. Good fun.