This film is currently unavailable
The Woodsman and the Rain
A redneck lumberjack is recruited to work on a rookie producer's inane zombie movie, in this hilarious movie-making satire.
Comedy 2011 128 mins
Director: Shûichi Okita
Overview
Katsu (Koji Yakusho; 13 Assassins) plays a 60-year-old lumberjack who lives in a small, tranquil village in the Kiso mountains. When a film crew suddenly arrives to shoot a zombie movie, Katsu finds himself unwittingly roped into assisting the production and is increasing frustrated by the pushy crew, especially the young, seemingly spineless director Koichi (Shun Oguri; Sukiyaki Western Django).
However, an improbable friendship soon develops between Katsu and Koichi, as Katsu comes to see joy in the filmmaking process, and gradually helps Koichi to recover his sense of self. Soon, their bond inspires an unusual collaboration between the villagers and the film crew. Shûichi Okita's third film is both a sharp satire of the madness of movie-making and a sedately paced, charming character comedy; winner of a Special Jury Prize at the Tokyo International Film Festival 2011.
Contains moderate bloody imagesRelated
Comedy
Heart of Glass Heart of Glass
Comedy 1976 94 mins Director: Werner Herzog
An 18th-century Bavarian community falls apart when the local glassmaker dies, in Werner Herzog's mesmerising drama for which he famously directed his actors under hypnosis.
What Did the Lady Forget? What Did the Lady Forget?
Comedy 1937 71 mins Director: Yasujirō Ozu
Ozu's comic pre-war feature about a professor who falls into the clutches of his audacious niece.
Where Now Are the Dreams of Youth? Where Now Are the Dreams of Youth?
Comedy 1932 86 mins Silent Director: Yasujirō Ozu
Ozu’s long-term collaborator Kogo Noda scripts a subtle shift from light to dark as Hirano’s carefree college life is marred by tragedy.
The Lady and the Beard The Lady and the Beard
Comedy 1931 73 mins Silent Director: Yasujirō Ozu
Graduate Okajima finds his old-fashioned beard makes life difficult in Ozu's comedy exploring the tension between tradition and modernity.
I Flunked, But… I Flunked, But…
Comedy 1930 64 mins Silent Director: Yasujirō Ozu
Takahashi finds a creative way to avoid doing his revision in Ozu's roguish comedy, reminiscent of Harold Lloyd’s The Freshman.
Good Morning Good Morning
Comedy 1959 94 mins Director: Yasujirō Ozu
Yasujiro Ozu's cheerful comedy about the silliness of everyday chatter
21st-century Japan
Sweet Bean Sweet Bean
Drama 2015 113 mins Director: Naomi Kawase
A struggling street food vendor accepts help from an elderly lady with a sensational recipe up her sleeve, in Naomi Kawase's bittersweet drama of culinary redemption.
Nobody Knows Nobody Knows
Drama 2003 141 mins Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Koreeda’s drama about four children left to fend for themselves is a heartbreaking study of childhood neglect.
Still Walking Still Walking
Drama 2008 115 mins Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Koreeda’s subtle, moving account of the tensions within a family is his most Ozu-like film.
Departures Departures
Drama 2008 131 mins Director: Yôjirô Takita
A professional cellist gets a new job as an assistant mortician in this delightful and bittersweet drama, winner of the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar® in 2009.
The Mourning Forest The Mourning Forest
Drama 2007 97 mins Director: Naomi Kawase
A beautiful and contemplative portrait of grief from Cannes-winning filmmaker Naomi Kawase (Sweet Bean, Still the Water).
The Lust of Angels The Lust of Angels
Drama 2014 38 mins Director: Nagisa Isogai
After a schoolgirl is molested on the notorious 'groper train' in their town, a group a schoolgirls band together to emact revenge.
New
Beauty and the Dogs Beauty and the Dogs
Drama 2017 100 mins Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Kaouther Ben Hania’s bold and defiant fiction debut tells the story of a sexual assault in nine stunning single-take sequences.
200 Meters 200 Meters
Drama 2019 96 mins Director: Ameen Nayfeh
In Ameen Nayfeh’s accomplished feature debut, a Palestinian father navigates the complexities of life under occupation, where the wall separates him from his family.
Siberia Siberia
Drama 2020 91 mins Director: Abel Ferrara
Abel Ferrara returns with an extraordinarily vivid, visually dazzling and characteristically strange rumination on sex, dreams and death.
Talking about Trees Talking about Trees
Documentary 2019 94 mins Director: Suhaib Gasmelbari
Beautifully shot documentary about four members of the 'Sudanese Film Club' who decide to revive an old cinema.
Gallivant Gallivant
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1996 100 mins Director: Andrew Kötting
Andrew Kötting takes a terrific, twisting coastal tour of the UK with his family.
I've Been Trying to Tell You I've Been Trying to Tell You
Narrative music video 2021 45 mins Director: Alasdair McLellan
Saint Etienne present a beautiful and enveloping nostalgia trip through 1990s Britain.