Drive My Car (#1136)

Only Ryusuke Hamaguchi, with his extraordinary sensitivity to the mysterious resonances of human interactions, could sweep up international awards (including the Oscar for Best International Feature) and galvanize audiences everywhere with a pensive three-hour moviepresented in nine languages and adapted from Haruki Murakami storiesabout an experimental staging of an Anton Chekhov play. WithDrive My Car,the Japanese director has confirmed his place among contemporary cinemas most vital voices. Two years after his wifes unexpected death, Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima) arrives in Hiroshima to direct a production of Uncle Vanya for a theater festival and, through relationships with an actor (Masaki Okada) with whom he shares a tangled history and a chauffeur (Toko Miura) with whom he develops a surprising rapport, finds himself facing up to his emotional scars. This quietly mesmerizing tale of love, art, grie