Georgia Asian Times
Writer/director Matsumoto Kana’s brilliant follow-up to her equally brilliant
Mother Water follows the actress Touko, portrayed by Kobayashi Satomi, who hitchhikes into the Tokyo night, encountering random people she connects with over the next two days. The first, Nagano (Kase Ryo, whom I have yet to see take on a bad role), believes he’s saving her from a suicide attempt as she runs toward a truck outside a konbini. After an awkward introduction, they bond while Nagano gives Touko a lift in his van and Touko reveals she is an actress who walked off set during a film shoot. Next, Touko re-unites with former colleague Kikuchi (Harada Tomoyo), a screenwriter now working at an independent cinema. Lastly, the following morning, Touku meets Yasuko (Kuroki Haru, in what I believe is her debut role), a young woman studying for the college entry exam and applying for a job at a zoo.