Japanese Girls Never Die | Review

On a rainy day near Buckingham Palace, I went to the Institute of Contemporary Arts for the sold-out showing of Japanese Girls Never Die (2016), directed by Daigo Matsui. I shuffled into the second row of seats at the front and got comfortable. Japan Foundation’s Senior Arts Program Officer, Junko Takekawa, spoke before the film. She informed us that it was well received in Japan, but split the audience’s opinions down the middle either loving it or hating it.

The central role in this disjointed, non-linear narrative is Haruko Azumi (Yu Aoi), who lives at home with her senile grandmother, an overworked mother, and nonchalant, TV-entranced father. Beyond her estranged family and misogynistic workplace, she spends time with her childhood friend, Soga (Huey Ishizaki). Their relationship is a cold, slow silence that is hostile towards emotion, so opts for a longing stillness on the precipice of unreciprocated love.

Somewhere (and somewhen) else in the city, three friends-turned-graffiti crew careen through the streets, screaming and tagging every surface they pass. Yukio (Taiga) and Manabu (Shono Hayama) are inspired to become famous graffiti artists while Aina (Mitsuki Takahata) gets involved in the action too.

Their artist tag is what links these two sets of characters and marks the mysterious rift of time between them. The bright…