The mesmerizing Memorizu begins with Yuta (Tasuku Emoto) traveling hours away to a rural town on Japan’s southernmost major island. He’s planning to spend two months caring for his elderly father-in-law, incapacitated by a broken leg. The widowed father-in-law, Makoto (Issei Ogata), is grouchy and maddeningly particular, but Yuta dutifully carries on, looking forward to video calls from his wife Yuki (Moeka Hoshi) and their young daughter Hana (Shiki Inoue). This area is unfamiliar to Yuta, but he soon settles into a routine – walking the dog, eating his lunch on a bench with a view of a farm horse, and minding Makoto’s portrait photography shop.
Memorizu is the impressively confident debut feature by writer-director Miiku Sakanishi, who shows us that even the littlest moments add up to define a life. As these moments are documented by images – snapshots, photographic portraits, videos – Sakanishi forms Memorizu into a cinematic essay on memory. The editing by veteran editor Shinichi Fushima is impeccable, and Sakanishi’s pacing keeps us engrossed even with little movie action.
Many images, like selfies and even class photos, seem disposable, but they evoke memories that are re-experienced forever. Yuta himself begins taking photos on his daily rounds. It seems that his corporate job gives Yuta the flexibility to get away, while Yuki has to stay to care for Hana and for her job as a tour guide/translator for Chinese tourists; the video calls between them become increasingly important..
Eventually, we see more emotionally charged images: a flashback video from Yuta at the time of Hana’s birth, Makoto’s portrait of his best friend; and, most affecting, a recorded voicemail. Memorizu is authentically heartfelt without sinking into sentimentality.
Memorizu introduces us to Sakanishi as a gifted new auteur. I screened Memorizu for its world premiere at Tribeca, where it won the Best New Narrative Director Award.