Under the Open Sky (18)

After starting her career as an assistant of Hirokazu Kore-eda, filmmaker Miwa Nishikawa has established herself at the forefront of contemporary Japanese cinema with a number of successful features over the past two decades. Working with veteran actor Koji Yakusho and taking inspiration from real life sources, Nishikawa carefully depicts the stigma and struggles faced by ex-convicts in her new film.

Mikami Masao (Koji Yakusho), is released from prison after serving thirteen years for murder. With no friends or family and no skills to secure a job, he struggles to re-enter society. But Mikami is determined to leave his shadowy past behind him and to find his mother, from whom he was separated as a young child.

Meanwhile, a television company takes an interest in Mikami, seeking to make a documentary programme based on his life. Tsunoda (Taiga Nakano), a young TV director, approaches Mikami for an interview, and ends up witnessing the ups and downs of Mikami’s rehabilitation period.

Languages:
Japanese

Subtitles:
Full English