I found this film, saw the reviews and figured I'd be giving it 10 stars, as I love films about and especially shot in Japan which I adore. Sadly, this seems like it was made by a failing freshman college student. It's about nothing and not like Seinfeld was a show about nothing. Not even worth a long review pointing out all the flaws, as it already wasted too much of my time watching it. One of the worst movies (it's not a film) I've ever seen and THEE worst Japanese film I've ever seen.

In Tokyo, a young prostitute (Rin Takanashi) develops an unexpected connection with a widower (Tadashi Okuno) over a period of two days.At this point in his career, Abbas Kiarostami had been directing films for forty years, so he is no amateur. But it might be a bit of a new beginning, filming in Tokyo with an all-Japanese cast. In fact, had one not known better, they might assume the director was Japanese. What do these two worldviews create when blended? Professor Nico Baumbach makes much of this cultural difference (and rightfully so), saying Kiarostami's foreign immersion "heightens in a new way the sense of the filmmaker as spectator", but is then quick to point out that despite this, we are not alienated from our subjects. The experience of distance "becomes the condition for an emotional connection that otherwise would not have been possible." The film is also, in short, beautifully shot, with glorious cinematography. This is the sort of film, with its style and charismatic lead actress that one could watch for hours regardless of plot or substance. Critic David Denby says it more eloquently when he writes, "The cinematography is clear and hard-focused, and the editing produces long, flowing passages. This exquisitely made, elusive film has a lulling rhythm and a melancholy charm."

This is one of the very few good films I have watched in a while. This film is criticised for being simple, but Kiarostami's craft is almost flawless and very realistic. There are times when I questioned the duration of real-time in the film as he opt not to use jump cuts to show the shift in time, but except that minor glitch, this film was highly tense, deep and meaningful at so many levels. Unlike the superficial Hollywood garbage we get to see everyday, Kiarostami's films show us real people with real problems. Probably one of the very few directors who can claim to have real class in this present era. I started watching this film after reading an interview with the director. The film did not disappoint me even a little bit. I am ashamed that I did not come across his name before.

Though the characters within the movie are quite lifelike, the story that is ultimately told is uninteresting at best.The movie is entirely filled with long overly drawn out scenes where very little of interest is said, and absolutely nothing is done. All of the action takes place outside of frame, and while I appreciate the tension it creates, and the authenticity it brings, the movie itself ends up feeling empty and ultimately boring.I could work myself into a tizzy attempting to draw meaning from the story, but it really seems to be a case of simply letting events from a premise play out on screen. I got a similar feeling from "Lost in Translation," but even that movie had a lot more action and emotional depth to it.If you liked "Lost in Translation" you may find something to enjoy here, but if your eyes glaze over at the thought of staring at an old man driving a car for 20 minutes, it's fair to say you'd find this movie a waste of your time.