Like Someone in Love

Dir: Abbas Kiarostami

2012

***

In the late 1990s Abbas Kiarostami was driving late at night while on a visit to Tokyo and witnessed a young girl on the side of the street dressed as a bride. In the years following, while visiting Tokyo to promote other films, he realized that he was always looking for that same girl because she had left such an impression but that he would never likely notice her again in real life because she wouldn't be wearing the same dress. He has said in interviews that his experience became the basis for Like Someone in Love. Set in Tokyo, sociology student Akiko (Rin Takanashi) moonlights as a high-end prostitute. Her jealous boyfriend, Noriaki (Ryō Kase) is suspicious, but does not know about her work. One night, she is assigned to Takashi (Tadashi Okuno), an elderly former university professor who is more interested in making her dinner than having sex. The morning after their unconsummated night, Takashi drives Akiko to school for her exams. While waiting in the car for her, he encounters Noriaki, who assumes Takashi is her grandfather and asks permission to marry her. Takashi does not correct Noriaki's assumption and assures him he isn't ready for marriage. After Akiko's test, the three drive toward a bookstore. Noriaki diagnoses a problem with the car, and convinces Takashi to drive it to the garage he owns, where he replaces a fan belt. There they encounter one of Takashi's former students; Akiko worries he will reveal the truth to Noriaki. Takashi drops Akiko at the bookstore and returns home. Soon afterwards, he receives a panicked phone call from Akiko and returns to the bookstore to pick her up. Her mouth is bloodied, but she does not say why. Takashi takes Akiko to his apartment. Noriaki arrives, threatening them over the intercom and banging on the door. Takashi peers out his window to see what Noriaki is doing. An object is thrown through the window and Takashi falls to the floor as the credits roll. Kiarostami takes his time with his characters and their surroundings but decides to leave the story just any action is about to take place. It is somewhat frustrating but the consequences are clearly not the focus of the tale. This leaves me wondering what the focus actually was? It’s a slow drawn-out story, with the opening scene being a static shot over the shoulder of our main character, who is never in view. It take a while to get used to but Kiarostami’s observations soon become hypnotic. The film is essentially just that, an observation with a hint of a larger story. He enter the story after it has begun and leave before it is over. It never tells us anything, offering only oblique hints and reflective mystery. Kiarostami makes it surprisingly easy to follow when all is said and done but this will depend on the audience. Those who observe will have plenty to feed on but those who like to be fed will starve. It is often hard for a westerner to judge the acting abilities of those of a different culture who speak a different language but I suspect Rin Takanashi and Ryo Kase overacted somewhat, while Tadashi Okuno played his part perfectly. I could have honestly just watched him walking around his apartment and would have been satisfied. For all of the stunted scenes of interaction, there are plenty of beautifully reflective moments to enjoy. I loved the long drawn-out taxi journey Akiko takes at the beginning of the film, it wasn’t that important to the already thin plot but it was like icing on a cake. I would say I appreciated the film more than I enjoyed it and it isn’t a film I would ever watch again but at the same time I wish more directors would take their time in their films and reflect on everyday beauty. It also makes a valid point that we don’t need to know why certain things happen or indeed what does happen in the end. When you focus on only the important aspects of a story, a wonderfully ordinary sort of magic can make itself known and that is what Kiarostami achieves here, in what would sadly be his last film. Not a bad place to leave a fascinating career.