Perfect Days

The film starts slow, but that's the point. We start to know a dedicated Tokyo toilet cleaner who goes through his daily routine, apparently happy with his life. Then a series of minor events cause upheaval: his colleagues, family, and romantic interest remind him of life's missed opportunities. All very subtle reminders that you can be perfectly happy in a bland life following your daily routine, but that life's circumstances are forever changing, and are inviting and challenging you to lead life on a higher, more interesting level. The closing shot reveals a clearly emotional toilet cleaner driving to work: life's new opportunities have unsettled him. The open ending leaves us wondering what's next. A great movie that is largely carried by the phenomenal Koji Yashuko: he superbly carries the story with his facial expressions between the extremely sparse dialogues. The cinematography by Franz Lustig is also incredibly good: the closing scene, the loving lighting of the numerous toilets, etc. I'd rate it higher but the film is vaguely unsatisfying in its sublety: it generates the itch but just barely scratches it. But definitely one of the best films of 2023.

It's a movie about mundane life, in different ways. While watching this movie you might think, where is this story going? Is something happening? Will his routine fall apart? Is he meeting someone? Maybe, maybe not...

The story will make you conscious about simple things in your daily life. Those activities can be happy, a little sad or unexpected. It's all about your own perception.

Overall, this movie was relaxing to experience and eye-opening in an interesting way. When I walked out of the cinema and looked around it made me feel very privileged about life. Every person experiences satisfactions in their own way. If you are a homeless, disabled, a CEO, a toiler-cleaner, happiness finds its way.

It won't blow you away, but you will not leave empty-handed. For two weeks, we follow a Japanese toilet cleaner in Tokyo. Not much happens, but that is the beauty of it all. Hirayama, played by fantastic Koji Yakusho, does his job, listens to excellent music, reads books, and goes about his everyday, unexciting routine. It does not sound special, right? But it is.

For Hirayama, the small, boring, and common things are beautiful. He stops for a moment and looks at the beautiful trees, which the rest of us walk past daily and never notice. When you leave the theaters, your walk home will be special. It's impossible to watch this movie without going outside and appreciating the small (but beautiful) things.

I have never seen a more authentic movie. This movie does whatever the hell it pleases. It's not here to live up to any expectations or to serve a specific purpose; no, it's here because it feels like it wants to be here, and we are fortunate enough to be included in its existence.

This film is about a man who truly lives in the moment without being some spiritual guru. He deals with whatever comes his way, the good, the bad and the ugly, and he welcomes it without words. That's because he doesn't need words. He doesn't need to analyze, remember or anticipate because "now is now". He accepts and embraces reality, finding joy in every little detail. But also not shying away from sorrow. But he never gets dramatic.

And that's why this movie is so unique. There is no plot, there is no past full of hurt, there is no goal, there is no desire. Yet, it was mesmerizing, and I was glued to the screen. I was blown away. It's a movie that will stick with me for a long time.

I saw it as a kind of poem about happiness in fair, simple terms , as refuge against high expectations and social pressure, as precise portrait of the relation with the others.

I saw it, in same measure, as a sort of idealisation of life, moral lesson, fair portrait of lonely man and cold definition of truth..

Not less, I saw it as portrait of me, sure, in basic terms, with large slices of desire to real be.

But, out of this identification with Hirayama, Perfect Days has the gift to be a beautiful, admirable crafted, scene by scene, film. In essence, this is the real thing matters . Near the great music. A beautiful exploration by Wim Wenders of dreams of his audience , with some bovaric touch, about a life who was not him.