the final scenes all is devastatingly revealed in a highly focused, carefully calibrated performance by

work of Inoue, who had once starred in pop dramas and movies, but had since

be persuasive just by standing there, without saying a word

that Inoue hesitated before accepting the role

her to accept the challenge of making the film with me,” he said

decided to do it as a chance that might come only once in her acting

previous film, which was based on his own experience as a survivor of a major

I wanted to put some distance between myself and the story,” Sugita said

wanted to avoid the kind of over-explaining that is so common in Japanese films, indies

bit worried that foreign audiences will have trouble understanding Yuko’s character, since she