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The Land of Hope

Kibô no kuni (The Land of Hope)

2012

Sion Sono

Isao Natsuyagi, Naoko Otani, Megumi Kagurazaka, Jun Murakami ...

6.5

212

Drama Prolific Japanese director Sion Sono departs from his usual style for this movingly restrained drama of a rural family's struggle to survive in the aftermath of the Tōhoku earthquake and the resulting nuclear crisis.

	Author	Review
Japan	Mark Schilling The Japan Times	"Sono’s allegorical approach, though, is not only congenial to him as a filmmaker (...) but right for his subject matter."	POS
United Kingdom	Mark Adams Screendaily	"A slowly poignant and sober film (...) Shot in clear, chilly and sombre tones and with atmospheric sound effects to fit the shots of an oddly beautiful snowy wasteland, the film is memorable and moving"	POS
United States	The Hollywood Reporter	"Sion’s sensitive treatment of the subject is respectful and pain-wracked, never exploitative, but it’s a long, draining journey for everyone, audience included"	NEU
Canada	Hugo Ozman Screen Anarchy	"Beautifully shot by director of photography Miki Shigenori, the film has a poetic beauty while the documentary-style of filming gives it a strong sense of realism"	POS
United States	Maggie Lee Variety	"Notwithstanding Sono’s penchant for overwriting dialogue and overstating metaphors, the account feels poignantly truthful"	POS

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