All Around Us

The journey of a married couple after the death of a child, and how they each begin to come to terms with its reality, this film follows the lives of Kanao (Lily Franky) and his wife Shoko (Tae Kimura).

Shoko, who works for a publishing company, was a bit of a control freak. While Kanao, who has become a courtroom sketch artist, is placid. After Shoko lost her most-wanted, she is gradually losing her balance. Kanao, meanwhile, tries simply to accept her just as she is. This is the story of their relationship over ten years, as they try to overcome their problems together.

In this gem of a film, Hashiguchi tries to explore how humans are able to have hope in difficult circumstances, presenting the pains and struggles of a married couple, in a way that is at once sweepingly panoramic and microscopically intimate. Starting in 1993, and set over the following ten years, this film reflects the parallel world of Japanese society, tracing the real social problems that Japan faced at the time. Recognised at the Japanese Academy Awards 2009, auteur Hashiguchi also won Best Screenplay with this film in 2009, at the Mainichi Film Concours.