Something to watch tonight: Saturday 20 July
Perfect Days (Wenders, 2023)
This beautiful thing* arrived in my letterbox yesterday so I thought I would revisit my review from the original cinema release, back in January of this year:
Kôji Yakusho is Hirayama, a middle-aged man living in a modest flat in central Tokyo – there’s a view of the famous Sky Tree tower when he steps out into the street. Every morning before dawn he is woken by the sound of a neighbour sweeping up leaves. He cleans his teeth, puts on his overalls, buys a can of coffee from the vending machine and sets off for work in his little blue van.
He cleans public toilets for a living – all over Tokyo. Almost the first thing you notice is that these facilities are wonderful compared with what we are used to here. All different, all architecturally thoughtful and technologically advanced. Citizens should be proud of having such high standards for convenience and Hirayama takes great pride in his work supporting them.
When we were in Japan, we saw how you could imagine that there are no ‘shit’ jobs. Even the guy who opens and closes the gate to the hotel car park wears white gloves. Every job contributes to the smooth running of society which means that everyone benefits from that work.
Not everyone agrees, though. Hirayama has a young co-worker (Tokio Emoto) whose work ethic is not as pronounced but, despite his unreliability, even he has some surprises to offer.
As we get to know Hirayama’s silent routines – lunch in the park with convenience store sandwiches and his trusty analogue camera, bathing at the local onsen, dinner every night at the same restaurant in a subway station next to a discount DVD store, falling asleep reading last thing at night – we get the picture of someone who seems like a simple man who has worked a few things out about himself and is happy as a result.
But, much like the greatest film ever made (according to Sight & Sound’s critics’ poll), each repetition reveals subtle differences and the arrival of new people mixes things up. Welcome or unwelcome, change is inevitable all the same.
Gentle, profound, delicately observant, Perfect Days might be my idea of a perfect film. Joining all the strong films made last year by directors in their 80s, Perfect Days is made by a relative baby. Wenders is only 78 but he has made something that I think only an older person could have made.
Pay attention to small things. Next time is next time – Now is now.
I’ve made that piece from the archive free to all subscribers because you might also like to read my thoughts on the musical The Color Purple and the not-musical The Iron Claw which came out in the same week.
*New Zealand’s giant classification stickers are awful aren’t they? Another argument for us to just federate with Australia and be done with it.
Where to watch Perfect Days
Aotearoa and Australia: Digital rental or physical media from Madman Entertainment
Canada: Digital rental
Ireland & UK: Streaming on Mubi
USA: Streaming on Hulu
Hi Dan, have you read Brian, by Irish author Jeremy Cooper? A paen of sorts to the British Film Institute. I think you'd love it.