November 6-December 31, 2020
Following the widespread acclaim of his superlative 2016 feature Happy Hour and its unexpected follow-up Asako I & II (2018), Ryusuke Hamaguchi has recently emerged as one of Japan’s most eminent filmmakers. With a co-writing credit on his former mentor Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s latest Venice Film Festival Silver Lion-winning film Wife of a Spy (2020), Hamaguchi’s prominence as an important and exciting voice within the international cinema community only continues to grow. In light of this recent accolade, Japan Society takes a look back on Hamaguchi’s career to offer a handpicked selection of lesser known works—consisting of his seldom screened debut feature film and two mid-length narrative fiction gems—that shed light on the auteur’s evolving style and thematic interests, including his ongoing fascination with the passage of time and the elusive nature of performance, perception and truth.