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Directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi
親密さ
A slow-burn, atmospheric drama.
Hamaguchi wrote and directed this film as a graduation project for the students at ENBU Seminar (film and theater school in Tokyo) when he taught there. It is a three-part film: The first part is a documentary-style production of a play; Then the actual full stage production of the play; and the epilogue. Poetry and written words play the central role in the movie.
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ryusuke hamaguchi is literally the greatest filmmaker ever holy shit whatthere’s a scene about an hour and a half in that spans 15 or so minutes that’s just so beautiful like omg if u watch this u will know what i am talking abam genuinely crying this film was so good(edit: i met him in 2024, greatest moment of my life)
"Why isn't love enough?"Ryusuke Hamaguchi's two masterpieces Happy Hour and Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy are among my all-time favorite films. (Drive My Car is great too, although it doesn't nearly hit like the previously mentioned films for me.) Thus, I went into this really wanting to love it.Intimacies is about the two-fold dilemma of a creative couple Reiko (Rei Hirano) and Ryouhei (Ryo Sato). On the one hand, they face the challenge of shepherding a play called "Intimacy" (Reiko directs, Ryo writes), an undertaking that's tension-filled and requires difficult compromises. On the other hand, they face the challenge of intimacy: they struggle to "truly" know each other, they struggle to communicate and compromise on their visions for their relationship, and they struggle to define and reconcile their competing philosophies regarding what love is/means.Fans of Hamaguchi's penetrative and introspective writing conveyed through conversations that meticulously unveil characters and their relationships to each other won't be disappointed. Ditto for those looking for authentic characters who all look and mainly interact like everyday people. I love how Hamaguchi always gets the "little things" right about typical human interactions - low-talking, posture, hesitation, microexpressions, making a statement and then restating your point to better convey what mean, etc.I enjoyed spectating as Reiko and Ryo attempt to untangle the messy complexity of life through art (their play, their interactions with the performers) and in their personal lives through numerous conversations and disagreements. It's especially interesting watching two level-headed people have low-intensity disagreements that are often restrained, logical, and honest yet simultaneously sad and painful.For me, Rei Hirano's performance as Reiko is easily the standout. This is due to the combination of her talent and charisma as well as the specific character, as Reiko's characterization is simply the most interesting. Any scene with her is automatically made better by her presence.With Intimacies, Hamaguchi invites us to observe what feels like a study of human nature mainly within the confines of performance and theater. What's intriguing is how we are also compelled to be observant of the "performance" of normal people in relation to expectations - expectations within relationships (platonic, familial, romantic), expectations between creative partners, and expectations a person's personal worldview places on themselves and others.Praise aside, I must be honest: This was a slog at times, to the point that I was enduring rather than enjoying what was transpiring in spots. All the hallmarks that make Hamaguchi's work phenomenal are present...only, IMO, at this early stage in his career, his vision and form aren't quite refined yet. To me, this lacks that je ne sais quoi that makes his later work utterly absorbing. That indefinable quality isn't wholly absent; however, it exists more via glimmers, and only occasionally surfaces at certain points throughout.Imagine Drive My Car but with nondescript supporting characters, with far less compelling drama driving a thin plot, and with even more time wrapped up in the preparation, rehearsing, and performance of an infinitely less interesting play. I even checked the time several times, something I never once considered with any of his other work.Outside Reiko, I didn't give a damn about a single other character, and wasn't given much reason to. This made it all the more difficult to maintain interest with her being absent during the second act's two hour play. 😑The decision to actually perform a whole play within a film in its entirety was...a choice. I desperately wanted to become fully immersed in the play, but I didn't find it particularly engaging or enlightening. It was a chore to get through. Sure, there were highlights (I wouldn't have been able to finish otherwise), but overall, it failed to be consistently captivating. It didn't help that the performances sometimes felt monotone and robotic (think Lanthimos). I guess it comes down to personal sensibilities. I likely lack the patience and attention span to better appreciate the play. As well, maybe I'm just someone who needs to actually be sitting in a busy theater taking in a live performance for it to better resonate, as I found the first act's allure to be diluted and distanced by the second act's artifice. Still, I do like seeing how some of the ideas conceived and volleyed about in the play's planning stages translate to the play's performance.I tried, but I just can't deny that this felt overlong (during the play) and that I sometimes struggled to maintain focus/interest (again, during the play). I couldn't fully connect. The coda was mad cute though!Intimacies gets points for its epic ambition (4+ hours), bold experimentation, and unconventional examination of the human condition through art and performance. It's well-executed and fascinating in theory, even during the periods where it isn't emotionally resonating or optimally fascinating in execution.🌟Why I Love East Asian Cinema🌟
[Ryūsuke Hamaguchi Ranked][Japanese Movies Ranked]Intimacies was a challenging film, but ended up being a rewarding one as well. It’s a risky and highly experimental journey, but if you’re familiar with Hamaguchi’s work that shouldn’t surprise you in the slightest. It ultimately feels like a precursor and lower-budget version of Drive My Car. Intimacies clocks in at 4 hours and 16 minutes long. The runtime is intimidating and I can’t lie, the movie was a slog to get through at certain points. It’s presented in two major parts and a minor epilogue to wrap things up. The first half is shown through a documentarian lens as a couple try to get a handle on the play they’ve been working hard on. Reiko and Ryouhei also have trouble navigating their own lives and relationship, finding it difficult to effectively communicate and get on the same wavelength with each other. There is an incredible 17-minute one shot with the both of them walking across a bridge having an emotional and intimate conversation. The scene starts off in an almost pitch black setting and by the end, we can almost see daybreak. Just a meticulously crafted and beautiful scene. Rei Hirano plays Reiko and Ryo Sato plays Ryouhei. They were both wonderful, but I gravitated towards Reiko more. Hirano gave us a hell of a performance with endless amounts of charisma and charm. Reiko has such a bubbly personality. For me, it made the second half of the film suffer a bit from not having her in it. After the “making of” part of the movie (if you wanna call it that), the latter half is the actual full stage production of the play itself. Big shoutout to the actors in it because they were so damn good. I don’t think there’s anyone out there that truly knows what it means to be human or what the human condition is exactly. But if there’s one person that comes close, I’d put my money on that person being Ryūsuke Hamaguchi. His characters are so human and he writes dialogue that is so engrossing and grounded in realism. The attention to detail to everything from the characters’ mannerisms and body language to the way they talk and express themselves is immaculate. When you’re watching a Hamaguchi film, you feel like you’re seeing actual people instead of actors playing a part. With Intimacies, that’s certainly no different. The movie touches on some personal topics such as identity, the attempt to know oneself, communication not just with words, but by listening. A lot of this is touched on again in the aforementioned Drive My Car. Intimacies acts sort of as a warmup to the 94th Oscar winner for Best International Feature, though I don’t wanna understate how much I enjoyed it. The runtime is no joke and felt daunting at times, but in the end I’m glad I took the time to watch it. The epilogue made it all worth it.
It follows a theatrical workshop and staging in Tokyo, examining the emotional entanglements and communication struggles of young adults across a sprawling four-hour structure.
Ryusuke Hamaguchi directed the film in 2013 as a graduation project for students at a Tokyo film and theater seminar.
The film has a runtime of 255 minutes, split across rehearsal documentation, the stage performance itself, and an epilogue.
