Bingbing

Fast paced and funny; occasionally wacky but it isn't a comedy. Two different women seek shelter in a Monastery that helps women who are abused by their husbands. Hikari Mitsushima redeems herself quite a bit here. She really sinks into her character. Good performances and quality abound but this doesn't seem like a film many people would want to see. Edo Period, ho-hum. It's really good but inconsequential.

I applaud Koreeda for exploring "nice". It's got to be one of the greater challenges a filmmaker faces.

A film about a young man accused of touching a young girl's hip and right buttock under her skirt on a crowded train doesn't sound like a compelling two and a half hour legal drama, but this film is compelling and impeccably done. Japan's 99.9% conviction rate is the star of this show and it's scary stuff.