Today I watched the movie The Japanese Wife” by acclaimed director Ms Aparna Sen. The plot couldn’t have been more captivating – 635 Letters, 3 Phone Calls, and 15 years of marriage, but they have not met; a husband in remote Bengal as a School Teacher and a wife in Japan. Having seen her previous work “Mrs & Mr Iyer”, I was sure I will see a phenomenal movie in The Japanese Wife and I was proved correct.
Aparna Sen has told the story brilliantly well, we are transported for 90 minutes to the remote Bengali village. The initial scene was very enjoyable where a big package from Japan comes to the little village and the whole village gets excited. Rahul Bose & Raima Sen have done their roles finely and measured. India can be proud that it has the talent to produce movies like these and not only the usual Bollywood & Kollywood Thamashas. A must-watch if you enjoy this genre.
I have three little criticisms about the movie:
- Rahul Bose’s character as SnehaMoy Chatterjee is pictured as relatively older than what he should actually be. Even in the flashback when he is in college he is shown as old, and after just 15 years he should be only 35 Years, how does he become so older as he is portrayed.
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With all the love and affection he has for his wife Miyagi, he could’ve easily learned the Japanese language.
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The story is almost exclusively told from the SnehaMoy side, ignoring Miyagi’s side of it. Maybe the cost of shooting in Japan might have limited the effort.
The Japanese Wife (2010)