This is a typical stylish Japanese romance targeted at the general market, clearly above average but not quite reaching top-notch. The plot is a tad melodramatic but quite acceptable, starting with young brother and sister, Sen and Suzume, in a cab en route to their hotel in Paris. On an impulse, Sen, a professional photographer, asks the driver to stop by a scenic spot for them to take some photos. A somewhat puzzling development ensues: Suzume tricks Sen into focusing on some photography objects, quickly unloads his baggage from the trunk, tells the driver to take off with her and yells to his brother thanking him for keeping her company to this point and telling hi she's going to seek her own adventure. The reason, we find out little bit later, is that she is coming to look up her boyfriend Kango hoping either persuade him to come home with her to Japan or to let her stay with him in Paris. The reason she wants Sen to come with her is that her brother has always been her "lucky charm" in that everything in her life seems to have gone well with him by her side. A little contrived, but necessary to bring the protagonist to Paris.
The main story is about a chance encounter Sen has with Aoi, a lovely woman who is maybe ten years older who has been living in Paris for a while. The plot here is also a tad contrived but will do. Passing by the stranded Sen by sheer chance, Aoi accidentally steps on his passport which happens to be lying on the ground, resulting in a sort of mutual destruction: the passport mutilated and the heel of her elegant shoe broken. With crazy glue which materializes from his baggage, he fixes her shoe while she gives him direction to the Japanese embassy, as well as her phone number. Later, when he finds that Suzume has got details about the hotel but can't be reached, with her phone switched off, Sen calls Aoi for help. Further developments hinges on having a drink too many culminated in the two finding a soul mate and listener in each other, to whom they can pour out their life's woes.
While comparison has been made by some to "Before sunrise/sunset", "Shoes" is not quite up there in that calibre. Still, it is a nice, light, bitter-sweet romance, quite enjoyable in its own right. Shunji Iwai fan will note that while he is the producer and not the director, this movie does clearly have his poetic style. Miho Nakayama, just past 40, is lovely and captivating as ever but in terms of artistic achievement, "Shoe" has a long way to go compared with "Toyko biyori" (1997) which is arguably her best work to-date.
Ryuichi Sakamoto's scores and Chigi Kanbe's photography are two other attractions of this movie. The most memorable scene in the movie occurs quite early, in a long cell phone conversation between the protagonists when she is giving him directions to get to his hotel. Quite cleverly, while not face-to-face, this is the most important scene that delivers the initial bonding between the protagonist, sustaining the rest of the movie.
The main story is about a chance encounter Sen has with Aoi, a lovely woman who is maybe ten years older who has been living in Paris for a while. The plot here is also a tad contrived but will do. Passing by the stranded Sen by sheer chance, Aoi accidentally steps on his passport which happens to be lying on the ground, resulting in a sort of mutual destruction: the passport mutilated and the heel of her elegant shoe broken. With crazy glue which materializes from his baggage, he fixes her shoe while she gives him direction to the Japanese embassy, as well as her phone number. Later, when he finds that Suzume has got details about the hotel but can't be reached, with her phone switched off, Sen calls Aoi for help. Further developments hinges on having a drink too many culminated in the two finding a soul mate and listener in each other, to whom they can pour out their life's woes.
While comparison has been made by some to "Before sunrise/sunset", "Shoes" is not quite up there in that calibre. Still, it is a nice, light, bitter-sweet romance, quite enjoyable in its own right. Shunji Iwai fan will note that while he is the producer and not the director, this movie does clearly have his poetic style. Miho Nakayama, just past 40, is lovely and captivating as ever but in terms of artistic achievement, "Shoe" has a long way to go compared with "Toyko biyori" (1997) which is arguably her best work to-date.
Ryuichi Sakamoto's scores and Chigi Kanbe's photography are two other attractions of this movie. The most memorable scene in the movie occurs quite early, in a long cell phone conversation between the protagonists when she is giving him directions to get to his hotel. Quite cleverly, while not face-to-face, this is the most important scene that delivers the initial bonding between the protagonist, sustaining the rest of the movie.
