WEBmikey: The Taste of Tea : 5 of 5

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The Taste of Tea : 5 of 5
3.24.2008 5:48 PM \| Link	This fantastic DVD was my Christmas gift from my pal Dae, which I had put on my Wish List because it has the same director as Kamikaze Girls, which I loved so much. I didn't really know what to expect from this Japanese movie, but it was much more enjoyable, inspirational, and touching than I could have imagined! The genre is hard to describe, because it's filled with surreal elements such as a girl being followed around by a giant version of herself only she can see, but it's also down to earth at the same time, and takes a lazy pace that really makes you stop to watch a scene closely. An example of this is the family of main characters will often sit quietly together on their porch, and watching these segments made me realize that these simple moments are what life is all about - stopping to enjoy the "taste of tea" (at least that's what the title means to me). The story has several subplots involving each member of a rural Japanese family, all of which are wonderful. The son joins the Go club at school to be near the girl he adores (played by Anna Tsuchiya, looking younger than her years), and the daughter needs to learn how to do a backflip to get rid of her giant self I mentioned before (yes, it's crazy, but it makes sense as it unfolds). The mom is a budding anime artist working on her own scenes, and the grandpa is completely nuts, but of course turns out to be a genius in the end in one of the film's most amazing moments. There are even more characters to follow, including the dad and his brothers, and there's even a bit of Yakuza to keep things interesting. This is definitely a unique movie with its own style, so I'm sure it's not for everyone, but I completely fell in love with it and I'm sure I'll be watching it again when I'm feeling the mood for some quiet wisdom with a touch of comedy. Labels: dvds


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