Little Forest: Summer/Autumn

There is such harmony, sustainability, and mindfulness in this young woman who lives off of the crops she grows or food she finds, out in an absolutely gorgeous part of rural Japan. The moments of quiet introspection, recognizing that the things she's doing stretch back in time long before she was born, or when she's eating a walnut rice ball made with last year's crop while harvesting this year's, are nice touches, and the skills shown in preparing food were inspiring. There's also an undercurrent of a sad backstory involving her mom who's left her for some reason, but it's alluded to so subtly that it's hard to tell what's happened - though maybe it's expanded on in the second movie, Little Forest: Winter/Spring. One of my favorite moments was when the ducks are released into the rice paddies to eat up bugs, slow down weeds, and fertilize ... but that was followed by my least favorite moment, a duck being killed and eviscerated (even though it was done in the most natural way possible, she used all parts of the duck, etc). To be honest, it all reminded me quite a bit of Chinese vlogger Li Ziqi, and if you're aware of her that's certainly the tone to expect here. It's really quite lovely, but just a little too tranquil for me.

Beautiful, poetic, ethereal. I started watching this late one night, and called it quits in the middle (from fatigue, not boredom), and the main character appeared in my dream. Get this, when I awoke early the following morning, I immediately returned to complete the film, went back to sleep after, and dreamed about the main character again. This would usually happen if I had left the film on and dozed off, but that was not the case. It was off. The beauty of the experience of watching this film was soo great that it permeated my dreams. And that's all I have to say about this gem.

I've already mentioned several times for such films I've come across that they are true art, a motion art, with an audio commentary. The 110 minutes of pleasure, where man and nature connect. I did not move for a second, and at the end, I felt it was too short. But I'm not expecting the same result from anybody else who give it a try. Since from a person to person, the taste and anticipation vary.

Despite it came a couple of years ago, I was very impressed with the recent films like 'Midnight Diner' and 'Sweet Bean' which led me to this flick. This film is not just about the food, but also about farming and other related things. From the fresh perspective about our food. The food we make and its root.

The nature provided us food for the past 200 thousand plus years. Full of natural and nutritional. But the art of preparing our own food using those items was not that ancient. As the time passed by, we the humans discovered many new ingredients and methods to make very healthy food by removing unwanted parts. From untasty natural food to tasty cooked food. We developed such skill over thousands of years. There are unhealthy foods too, like perhaps sugary, oily and fried items.

Everybody has to eat, so everybody knows to make at least one dish. It could be just bread and jam for some. Why I'm saying all this! Because the people from the cities use most the ready to use ingredients. Even in the off the season they get what they want. Those were preserved using the chemicals, which's bad for health. That's one of the highlights of this film. How to make your own from using naturally available items around you. And to prepare the food according to the season.

❝Cooking is a mirror that reflects your mind.❞

Very inspiring. Makes us to see carefully what we're eating. Besides, there are experimental cookings, as well as myth buster. The difference between someone expert and ours cooking. The taste and methods. Most importantly the assumption that we think the dish is our family's or the local or the nation's, but the time will come you to learn the truth. Maybe because as a kid, we had believed everything what the elders had said to us, while making fun out of us.

The details were awesome. More like you are watching a documentary film. The majority of the film was a background narration like a documentary film. When the direct dialogues between the characters appeared occasionally, it was like the narration shifting its phase. Such change was good, particularly moving on to other topics.

It was based on the manga of the same name, and from the genre called slice of life. Truly a perfect, most realistic slice of a rural Japanese life. This is the first part of two films called 'Summer/Autumn'. The other one called 'Winter/Spring'. The story begins at the end of the spring during still the atmosphere was foggy and the lands are wet, when it is a good time to cultivate the rice. The next half are the summer, maintaining the crops and following the harvest takes place.

In between these periods, there are many sub topics, the topics about each dish that prepared according to the season and availability of the items, I mean the seasonal ingredients in a remote place of Japan called Little Forest. If you are a food lover, you will be mouthwatering for several times in your watch. But there's no detail on how they are prepared like that shown in any cooking programmes. If you are good at cooking, luckily you would get most of the procedures.

The actress was brilliant. The locations were amazing. For every few minutes the film picks a topic in the form of a new dish and makes progress on that. So the lead character, Ichiko, was like a mystery. But as the story goes on, reveals enough about her to us. I'm expecting more in the next part, as seeing how the film had ended. I meant the final scene that gave a fresh hint about some earlier life events of hers.

She was alone, and that's the best part of this story. Because everything she said were directly to us. Not that two people having a conversation. Besides, cooking for two or two plus are always hefty job. Sometimes the life will be very joyous when you live by yourself. I mean not for the entire life, but for some period, like when you are set to discover yourself. On that aspect, in many ways the film boosts our confidence to go for what we desire to do in our life.

There's no story in it. You should not expect one. As I said earlier, it was a semi-documentary and all you would witness are like the real life, real thing. The nature documentaries are always best, but while watching it, I thought this flick was much better than those. You know, most of the todays nature documentaries are not truthful. If they see a lion wondering, they run out of patience and put a zebra, so they can capture a most magnificent lion hunting a zebra.

This is not a BBC, Nation Geography or a History Channel programme, but you can compare it to that level. Except it was all pre-planned. Cooking, farming, culture and the nature, this film was a whole pack. All in one as what those TV channels produces. Not a history, but as I said in the very first paragraph, an art. This is not like a must see film, but ignoring it even after learning about it will be a mistake, especially if you are a film fanatic or a Japanophile.

9/10

...the protagonist, a girl; comes back to her home in a rural area after have been living in the city for some time. The film shows a total exchange between Human beings and Nature. Displays the days (seasons) based on the food. Food that she make in an organically way; so, there are dishes (1st, 2nd, etc) then a voice giving us detailed specs of those delicious recipes. It also shows us enough of the daily work performed directly in that interchange with Nature. On one side is for what has she come for (and her doubts); this is something that is seen throughout the film. An example is the distant relationship with her mother in the past. Now, she has gone but nobody know(still)where; she has not left a note and the protagonist, does not seems to care much about it. The girl speaks not so much, but when she does it, generates concise thoughts that clears up her mind. The relationship with friends and old time neighbors is showed too. She acts just OK; she does not express any feeling; in a robotic kind of way.

Correct photography and beautiful landscapes make that with a few shoots one has a great idea of ​​what would be a life in such rural area.

Maybe that's the way we human beings should have evolved?... respect for nature, little intervention or necessary and delimited foot prints; each one living in their own way but in a civilized manner; adequate share of progress and technology. A fine tuning that many have lost; probably because we are too many and livelihood is not easy for most; Also worth seeing that the countryside of some countries is more likely to achieve this link between nature and technology due to have several details of the modern life tuned. The film has everything to be a great drama, however, it does not generate the necessary spark; it needs a bit more depth, more involved acting in the main character (this film has not the power of a Kiarostami film...); or perhaps that was what the director wanted to show¿? show a girl who seems to be immune to everything. There is a second part (another movie) called Winter/Spring; where I suppose, will close this cycle.

Basically I made a mistake haha.

I wanted to see Little Forest (2018) but got this one instead, without much checking....oh well. Only after 40 minutes it felt off. Until then (and after) it felt like a treat. It felt like a movie about symbiosis, about our connection to the earth and nature, it felt obvious, comfortable, chill.

Then I would have compared it with how Romania does agriculture. It doesn't feel the same. In Japan it seems like a more philosophical approach, much more profound. For us, it feels more like survival...either that or something was lost along the way. There is still respect but it's more distant and on a grander scale. When we make jam we make it for 20 people, not one. I still found some common ground to the stuff made in-house that has the same name as some brands...like the Nutella stuff. Nostalgic stuff.

You just feel that she will live past 100. If you want to escape, watch this and escape together with our protagonist.