Apparently this had very little to do with the book upon which it was based. But not having read the Murakami novel, I was able to enjoy the film on its own merits. It benefited from a non-Japanese director, who steered the project away from the typically overdone Japanese style, which seems always to push things too far – the acting, the emotions, the soundtrack. And who does it turn out to be? Tran Anh Hung, who directed The Vertical Ray of the Sun and The Scent of Green Papaya…

Somewhat like those films, this moved at a leisurely pace, and depended to a great degree on lingering shots of good-looking people. But this feels a good bit more melancholy. As Roger Ebert put it, “There’s something depressing about a young couple helplessly in love. Their state is so perfect, it must be doomed.”