Nagi Notes

Following an introspective, searching Yuri on her return from Taiwan to small town life in mountainous, rural Nagi from Taiwan, writer/director Koji Fukada presents an understated, engaging exploration of a community through the two women at its center. Recently divorced, architect Yuri (Shizuka Ishibashi) reestablishes her close, restrained relationship to her now ex-sister-in-law Yoriko (Takako Matsu). A sculptor of human-size blocks of wood that she will chainsaw and shape into recognizable human likenesses, Yoriko takes Yuri on as a model, ensuring hours of time together.