Film Forum

A giant talking frog, an elusive cat, lonely ineffectual men, existential uncertainty — signatures of internationally bestselling author Haruki Murakami’s modern Japan. Adapted from Murakami’s stories — many previously published in The New Yorker — and brought to the big screen in animated form by Pierre Földes (using an innovative live-action 3D motion capture process), mundane and psychedelic narratives interlock ingeniously, as each protagonist traverses emotional and physical distances, fantasy and memory, in search of deeper human connection. The result is an elegant, whimsical, and haunting experience. 

Check out LitHub’s list of what to read before and after seeing the film.

With support from the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation Fund and the Ada Katz Fund for Literature in Film

2022     110 MIN.     CANADA / FRANCE / LUXEMBOURG / THE NETHERLANDS    
IN ENGLISH     ZEITGEIST FILMS IN ASSOCIATION WITH KINO LORBER

Reviews

“CAPTIVATING AND THOUGHTFULLY WHIMSICAL. Joins recent standout Murakami adaptations such as the Oscar-winning DRIVE MY CAR or the slow-burn thriller BURNING by audaciously exploiting its distinct medium…While Murakami’s genius ability to ponder grand existential conundrums via seemingly mundane circumstances is the foundation, Földes’ interpretation and preservation of its surrealist quality and absurdist humor forges his own pathway into the material, both faithful and creatively free…Elegantly animated lucid dreams full of poetic imagery.”
– Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times

“DELIGHTFUL. The stories gradually intertwine in true Murakami fashion, adding up to a beautifully incomplete portrait of regular people trying to navigate transitional moments in their lives… Földes’ animation style is an equally perfect fit… The film unfolds like a picture book for adults, adding an innocent quality to the stories of sad debt collectors and horny couriers.”
– Christian Zilko, IndieWire

“Engrossing and persuasive, a world of mysteries…elegantly surreal… an impressive achievement, a piece of storytelling which balances moments of flighty whimsy against deeper existential questions.”
– Wendy Ide, Screen

“Above all the film perfectly holds the course of the pleasures of an exciting and very rich narrative (a scenario in interlocking parts very well constructed by the filmmaker with parallel advances, flashbacks, dreams, ‘normal’ and fantastic world, etc.) and of an animation style accessible to all audiences. Pierre Földes succeeds in his challenge… to adapt Haruki Murakami while remaining himself.”
– Fabien Lemercier, Cineuropa
Read Lemercier’s interview with filmmaker Pierre Földes.