The 2017 Toronto International Film Festival hosted the North American premiere for Naomi Kawase’s “Radiance”. Before it was released in Japan, it first premiered at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival in May, where it won the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury award. This award honours the films that dive into the complex emotional depths of human beings.
This film focused on the growing journey between Misako Ozaki (Ayame Misaki), an audio-description writer for White Lights, and Masaya Nakamori (Masatoshi Nagase), a renowned photographer. While working on providing the descriptive commentary to the latest film, Misako presents her commentary to a small group of moviegoers who are visually impaired. Nakamori, who is on the verge of losing his sight, is part of the small panel that critiques Misako’s descriptions. Nakamori’s brutal analysis of Misako’s subjective descriptions has her questioning his own imaginative capabilities, causing an antagonistic tension between them. It’s only outside their panel sessions do the two realize that there is more to each other than they could imagine.
Misako is a dedicated young woman that takes her job seriously. Her ability to describe a film’s visuals in a quick and precise way has her observing the world around her in its natural beauty. Though she has a tendency of inputting her subjective descriptions, something that initially angers Nakamori, Misako struggles to find that balance in her descriptions. She struggles to find a way to connect her audience to the beauty that she sees expressed in the film she’s describing. Ayame Misaki’s portrayal of Misako is astounding. Her ability to portray Misako’s observations of the beauty around her captivates the audience in viewing the world through her eyes, as if seeing nature’s beauty for the first time. The balance between patience and understanding was constantly shown in Misaki’s performance as she handles the struggle Misako faced as she tried to understand something she could never fully comprehend.
Then there is Nakamori, a renowned photographer that is forced to adapt to a new world where he can’t express his heart through his photography. Enraged by the fact that his loss of sight has cost him his passion, Nakamori has grown impatient towards those who are unable to grasp the loss he’s experiencing. Masatoshi Nagase’s portrayal of the renowned photographer is mesmerizing. The authenticity behind Nakamori’s struggles in regards to his dwindling sight brought not only an emotional response to the audience but it had shed a grim light on how much of a change losing the ability to see would alter someone’s life. It’s a sense that many take for granted. Aside from the physical struggles, the emotional ramifications that Nakamori experienced due to his loss are shown in every aspect of Nagase’s performance. From the desperation to finding his stolen camera, to the absolute terror when his sight worsens, Nagase has the audience captivated in these shifting moments when the simplest of his expressions conveyed such heavy emotion.
While the film focused on the growing relationship between Misako and Nakamori, there are other supporting characters that influence their journey together. Tomoko (Misuzu Kanno) is an actress, Misako’s boss and caring confidante, imparting words of wisdom when Misako needs a new perspective. Another character that Misako admires is Kitabayashi (Tatsuya Fuji), the director and lead actor of the film she’s currently describing for the visually impaired. When trying to get a better understanding of the film, Misako books an interview with the director. Kitabayashi’s insight on his project and his character leave Misako with conflicting outlooks on the film, causing her to realize that many interpretations are bound to be made over the same set of scenes.
One theme that circulated throughout the film was the beauty found in the world. The use of camera angles and lighting techniques help to capture the beauty within ordinary situations. Something simple as the sunlight catching onto a prism crystal becomes an ethereal sight thanks to Naomi Kawase’s cinematic techniques. While the physical struggle behind blindness was showcased through Nakamori, the film did a superb job in demonstrating the emotional struggles behind the loss for those afflicted and for those around them. The obstacles gave the audience an understanding of how much people rely on their sight when it’s suddenly taken away from Nakamori. The feeling of being isolated from a world that once felt like home was shown when Nakamori was around his fellow photographers. And then there is the trust that was building between Misako and Nakamori throughout the film. Their journey to achieve such a standing parallels the struggles people face when allowing someone to see a vulnerable side to them. Naomi Kawase did a marvellous job in conveying the many facets of emotions and how beauty can be found in the darkest of places.
Original Title: Hikari
Also Known as: Vers la lumière
Director: Naomi Kawase
Writer/Screenplay: Naomi Kawase
Country of Origin: Japan | France
Language: Japanese
Length: 101 minutes
Original Release: May 27, 2017
Publication Note:
This was published for AsianWave Magazine.
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