Drive My Car
Drive My Car
Starring Hidetoshi Nishijima, Toko Miura, Masaki Okada, Reika Kirishima
Directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi
Starring Hidetoshi Nishijima, Toko Miura, Masaki Okada, Reika Kirishima
Directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi
Who knew you would be able to tell such a poignant, powerful, and deeply introspective story told through average people driving around in a Talladega Red 1990 Saab 900 Aero coupe? Apparently director Ryusuke Hamaguchi could, as he put to film a short story written by Haruki Murakami called Men Without Women and turned it into a visual masterpiece, a three-hour epic that's well worth it's elongated runtime, as not a moment is spared in the storytelling, and unlike many other films out there, this one had several "moments" that lingered with this viewer long after the credits rolled. Put simply, it's a story of the ability to know others through the mastery of knowing oneself, while also dealing with deep personal loss, regret, and a quiet search for atonement.
Theater director Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima) and his screenwriting wife Oto (Reika Kirishima) are living an idyllic life that's not without its share of problems, but Yusuke in particular attempts to make things work, even years after a shared traumatic experience. Oto is slowly working on a new screenplay, while he enjoys the solitude of driving his Saab 900 Aero coupe. Two years later, after a traumatic event changes Yusuke's trajectory, he finds himself in Hiroshima, taking a residency at theater that's going to be putting on the classic Chekhov play Uncle Vanya. One of the rules that Yusuke has to follow is that he needs a chauffeur to drive him around, to his great dismay, because he finds peace in driving, listening to Oto's recording of Uncle Vanya.
When he first meets twenty-three-year-old hired driver Misaki Watari (Toko Miura), Yusuke is hesitant to allow the woman to drive his car, but he's surprised to find how well she drives it, almost like they're not moving at all. Her effortless ability opens a door between the two, and they slowly begin to open up to each other about their past mistakes and pains. Meanwhile, the group of actors chosen to star in the play includes Koji Takatsuki (Masaki Okada), whom Yusuke has an uneasy past with, and this only exasperates his mental state, and he relies on Watari for more than just being someone who drives him around, but opens up in a more personal way.
As I eluded to earlier, there's several films I've seen that have their "moments" - parts of the film that've stuck with me long after it ends. "Call Me By Your Name" has that final gut-wrenching scene. "Avengers: Endgame" has the portals opening. "Drive My Car" has three "moments" that have stuck out with me, and I won't divulge them here because they'd be going into spoiler territory, but suffice it to say I had high expectations going into the film, and I left with my expectations being far exceeded. While I made a big deal about dramas being too long (such as "King Richard"), "Drive My Car"'s three-hour runtime seemed a bit daunting at first, but to me there wasn't a minute wasted or unnecessary, as every second was needed to tell this sweeping, operatic story to get its full, effective result.
That story centers around several major issues, but most importantly the human desire to understand one another, and to grasp the knowledge that we won't fully understand others until we begin to understand ourselves. Yusuke is haunted by events of his past, and things that were left unsaid, as well as events that he wished he could go back to change, but "Drive My Car" doesn't focus on flashbacks, but rather deals with the here-and-now, much like we all do in our own lives. We aren't always gifted with the Hollywood "happy ending" where we manage to tell our loved ones everything before they pass, and we have to deal with the words left unsaid, the actions left unnoticed, and the confrontations left unresolved. Yusuke is haunted by these "what ifs" so much that it deeply affects his life moving forward, but he finds a kindred spirit in Misaki Watari, who also has a very troubled past, and as they try to understand those around them, they begin to grasp the concept of truly understanding themselves in the process - all while Watari both metaphorically and literally drives the story forward.
Iconic film critic Roger Ebert said once that "it's a bad idea to reference a beloved movie in your film, since it can only serve to remind people of superior features they could be watching instead." "Drive My Car" doesn't only reference another work, but builds its entire premise around it, paralleling the classic Anton Chekhov play Uncle Vanya more than just as a launching pad. The play, as well as the story unfolding in the film, has obvious connections that far exceed both source materials, and manages to make the movie something more interesting than Uncle Vanya due to the underlying nature of the film itself. As Yusuke continues to work on the play, the play itself works him, serving as a unique pas-de-deux between the two mediums that converge in several moments (some of which are those "moments" I mentioned earlier).
The film has a unique hold on me, as I was transfixed from the very moment, almost in a mythical sense as I was awe-struck by the simple events occurring on screen - it wasn't anything earth-shattering or unique, but beautiful in its simplicity. This is due to the masterful cinematography work of Hidetoshi Shinomiya, who always pushes the story forward with uniquely personal visuals that have this long-lasting effect even though it's nothing really exceptional at the moment (such as when Yusuke and Misaki hold their cigarettes out the sunroof window so as to not soil the car's interior, or how the camera pans them as they stand by a river, or Yusuke looking over the edge of a floating barge he's in). There's also inspired moments of audio that pulls you in, such as a cell phone camera going off whose sound made me think someone in the theater was taking pictures, but it was happening on screen. These immersive events helped me become more immersed in the experience.
Then there's the performances, and in a heavily-dialogue-laden epic such as this, you need actors who are more than up for the job. Thankfully Hidetoshi Nishijima and Toko Miura were inspired choices, as they both played their characters with unique vigor and slow-burn detail. Nishijima played Yusuke as a man who's like a powder keg - a man who harbors so much ill will, malice, and situations left unresolved you can almost literally see the fuse being lit and the flame slowly burning down before the bomb eventually goes off, and Nishijima plays it beautifully. Likewise, Masaki Okada's Watari is also a woman with unresolved issues, but her wick is more subdued. While at first she serves merely as Yusuke's driver, she becomes so much more when Yusuke shares his respect for her at a friendly dinner, and she begins opening up more about her past. Miura plays Watari like an onion, slowly peeling away the outer layers before we get to the heart of the matter, and it's an absolute joy to behold. As almost a play in itself, "Drive My Car" is elevated by these two performers and their passionate, dedicated performances.
If you don't allow a three-hour-long runtime to stop you, "Drive My Car" will be one of those rare memorable films that'll be etched in your mind for a long time afterward, something more akin to an epic than just a film, a cinematic experience that sheds light on the importance of understanding ourselves in order to try to grasp a better understanding on the people and events that surround us.
The Score: A+
Theater director Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima) and his screenwriting wife Oto (Reika Kirishima) are living an idyllic life that's not without its share of problems, but Yusuke in particular attempts to make things work, even years after a shared traumatic experience. Oto is slowly working on a new screenplay, while he enjoys the solitude of driving his Saab 900 Aero coupe. Two years later, after a traumatic event changes Yusuke's trajectory, he finds himself in Hiroshima, taking a residency at theater that's going to be putting on the classic Chekhov play Uncle Vanya. One of the rules that Yusuke has to follow is that he needs a chauffeur to drive him around, to his great dismay, because he finds peace in driving, listening to Oto's recording of Uncle Vanya.
When he first meets twenty-three-year-old hired driver Misaki Watari (Toko Miura), Yusuke is hesitant to allow the woman to drive his car, but he's surprised to find how well she drives it, almost like they're not moving at all. Her effortless ability opens a door between the two, and they slowly begin to open up to each other about their past mistakes and pains. Meanwhile, the group of actors chosen to star in the play includes Koji Takatsuki (Masaki Okada), whom Yusuke has an uneasy past with, and this only exasperates his mental state, and he relies on Watari for more than just being someone who drives him around, but opens up in a more personal way.
As I eluded to earlier, there's several films I've seen that have their "moments" - parts of the film that've stuck with me long after it ends. "Call Me By Your Name" has that final gut-wrenching scene. "Avengers: Endgame" has the portals opening. "Drive My Car" has three "moments" that have stuck out with me, and I won't divulge them here because they'd be going into spoiler territory, but suffice it to say I had high expectations going into the film, and I left with my expectations being far exceeded. While I made a big deal about dramas being too long (such as "King Richard"), "Drive My Car"'s three-hour runtime seemed a bit daunting at first, but to me there wasn't a minute wasted or unnecessary, as every second was needed to tell this sweeping, operatic story to get its full, effective result.
That story centers around several major issues, but most importantly the human desire to understand one another, and to grasp the knowledge that we won't fully understand others until we begin to understand ourselves. Yusuke is haunted by events of his past, and things that were left unsaid, as well as events that he wished he could go back to change, but "Drive My Car" doesn't focus on flashbacks, but rather deals with the here-and-now, much like we all do in our own lives. We aren't always gifted with the Hollywood "happy ending" where we manage to tell our loved ones everything before they pass, and we have to deal with the words left unsaid, the actions left unnoticed, and the confrontations left unresolved. Yusuke is haunted by these "what ifs" so much that it deeply affects his life moving forward, but he finds a kindred spirit in Misaki Watari, who also has a very troubled past, and as they try to understand those around them, they begin to grasp the concept of truly understanding themselves in the process - all while Watari both metaphorically and literally drives the story forward.
Iconic film critic Roger Ebert said once that "it's a bad idea to reference a beloved movie in your film, since it can only serve to remind people of superior features they could be watching instead." "Drive My Car" doesn't only reference another work, but builds its entire premise around it, paralleling the classic Anton Chekhov play Uncle Vanya more than just as a launching pad. The play, as well as the story unfolding in the film, has obvious connections that far exceed both source materials, and manages to make the movie something more interesting than Uncle Vanya due to the underlying nature of the film itself. As Yusuke continues to work on the play, the play itself works him, serving as a unique pas-de-deux between the two mediums that converge in several moments (some of which are those "moments" I mentioned earlier).
The film has a unique hold on me, as I was transfixed from the very moment, almost in a mythical sense as I was awe-struck by the simple events occurring on screen - it wasn't anything earth-shattering or unique, but beautiful in its simplicity. This is due to the masterful cinematography work of Hidetoshi Shinomiya, who always pushes the story forward with uniquely personal visuals that have this long-lasting effect even though it's nothing really exceptional at the moment (such as when Yusuke and Misaki hold their cigarettes out the sunroof window so as to not soil the car's interior, or how the camera pans them as they stand by a river, or Yusuke looking over the edge of a floating barge he's in). There's also inspired moments of audio that pulls you in, such as a cell phone camera going off whose sound made me think someone in the theater was taking pictures, but it was happening on screen. These immersive events helped me become more immersed in the experience.
Then there's the performances, and in a heavily-dialogue-laden epic such as this, you need actors who are more than up for the job. Thankfully Hidetoshi Nishijima and Toko Miura were inspired choices, as they both played their characters with unique vigor and slow-burn detail. Nishijima played Yusuke as a man who's like a powder keg - a man who harbors so much ill will, malice, and situations left unresolved you can almost literally see the fuse being lit and the flame slowly burning down before the bomb eventually goes off, and Nishijima plays it beautifully. Likewise, Masaki Okada's Watari is also a woman with unresolved issues, but her wick is more subdued. While at first she serves merely as Yusuke's driver, she becomes so much more when Yusuke shares his respect for her at a friendly dinner, and she begins opening up more about her past. Miura plays Watari like an onion, slowly peeling away the outer layers before we get to the heart of the matter, and it's an absolute joy to behold. As almost a play in itself, "Drive My Car" is elevated by these two performers and their passionate, dedicated performances.
If you don't allow a three-hour-long runtime to stop you, "Drive My Car" will be one of those rare memorable films that'll be etched in your mind for a long time afterward, something more akin to an epic than just a film, a cinematic experience that sheds light on the importance of understanding ourselves in order to try to grasp a better understanding on the people and events that surround us.
The Score: A+
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