RUDE TO LOVE

Eguchi dominates the film in her role as Momoko, an always elegantly attired housewife who meticulously tends the home she shares with her indifferent husband Mamoru (Kotaro Koizumi), next to property in which her frosty, judgmental mother-in-law (Jun Fubuki) lives. Obsessed with keeping the community garbage area clean, and devoted to cooking elaborate Japanese meals every night, she is slow to notice that a chasm has opened up. When an incident occurs that all but slaps her over the face with it, Momoko becomes even more determined to keep her family together… but rising hysteria and suppressed emotions sometimes get the better of her. And so they should!

Based on bestselling author Shuichi Yoshida’s (Parade, Akunin/Villain) novel of the same name, the slow-burn Rude to Love builds unnerving suspense. Trapped in claustrophobic framing and stalked by handheld tracking shots, Eguchi nevertheless crafts a complex, nuanced character who deserves both our attention and some measure of respect, although she doesn’t get any except from a fellow second-class citizen. Morigaki packs the story with rich with metaphorical motifs (mysterious fires, soap-making, missing cats) that add layers of richness to this insightful psychological portrait that says loads about Japanese social mores, gender politics and identity — and makes us laugh in the process.