Hush! (Hashiguchi, 2001): Genesis Cinema, 6.10pm
Ryosuke Hashiguchi’s film (screened here in 35mm) was first shown in the official selection of the 2001 Cannes Film Festival Directors’ Fortnight, and twenty years after its release, this groundbreaking work can be appreciated for its anticipation of current debates around same-sex families and parenthood.
Chicago Reader review:
Two gay men and a straight woman who wants one of them to father her child gradually come together to form an elective family in this 2001 Japanese drama. The woman, who works in a dental office, is a bit unbalanced: she’s had several failed affairs and attempted suicide in the past. The relationship between the men is tentative at first—one of them is closeted and sometimes dates women. Though often entertaining, the film suffers from a loose narrative structure and inconsistencies in tone. Director Ryosuke Hashiguchi’s long takes and static compositions, which effectively articulate the emotional detachment of the characters, are disrupted by a rapidly cut comedy sequence that seems jarringly out of place.
Fred Camper
Here (and above) is an extract.
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