In 2012, the Japanese Film Festival Magazine launched a unique movie competition called “Moosic Lab”. Upcoming directors are encouraged to collaborate with music artists to create entries for the contest. In last year's edition, Miki Tomita's short film “The Sky Is Not Always Blue” won the award for best actress. For her newest project, “Beats per Mizu”, she teams up with the band “Toketa Denkyu”.
The Kanagawa-born filmmaker tells the story of Sumiko, a university student, who has the ability to instantly grab the BPM (beats per minute) of everything that surrounds her. When her best friend, Yukimi, takes her to a concert, she meets Mizu and her own rhythm gets off the tracks.
“Beats per Mizu” is a romantic comedy that humorously takes on the feeling of falling in love. The variety of emotions is also resembled in different styles. Tomita changes camera lenses and plays with the color grading. That's how lightning and cinematography guide us through Sumiko's changes of mood. The light-hearted music by “Toketa Denkyu” fits the fairytale storyline and reflects on the harshness that comes up when expectations meet reality. One thing is for sure: You can never plan to fall in love.
Ruka Ishikawa continues to shine in the lead role. As in “Colorless” (2019), she expresses a lot with little effort. Her minimalistic acting matches her character. Through inner dialogue, she narrates the film and can combine voice- and physical acting. Although I was not fully convinced of her performance in “Shell and Joint“, I hope to see her in bigger productions in the future.
The topic of water is another narrative that “Beats per Mizu” plays out well. In many scenes, water plays a sometimes more sometimes less important role. If it is the workplace, Sumiko's room, or the name of her crush “Mizu” (translates into “Water”), these little details are fun to discover and make the whole watching experience very enjoyable. On top, there is a fairytale story for all the mermaid fans, that reoccurs during the film.
Besides all the eye for detail, the script kind of loses its way half-way through. The romantic aspect turns more and more into funny stalking situations, in which the protagonist follows Mizu secretly to document his daily routine. The chemistry between Sumiko and Mizu is overlayed by intimate scenes between Sumiko and her best friend Yukimi. In certain moments, one could even assume that they may fall in love at the end of the story.
This won't affect the overall good impression that the movie leaves on you. Ruka Ishikawa's performance is something to look out for and might ensure Miki Tomita another award in this year's competition.
