The Ainu are an East Asian ethnic group indigenous to northern Japan, the original inhabitants of Hokkaido and some of its nearby Russian territories. A number of those who have not been fully assimilated as Japanese are living in small communities such as the one in Hokkaido the movie focuses on, essentially surviving through tourism. It is also worth noting that there has been a rise of interest towards these marginalized communities thorough “Golden Kamuy” a multi-awarded manga that focuses on Ainu people and has already sold more than 18 million copies and spawned three seasons of the homonymous anime. “Ainu Mosir” takes a much more grounded approach to the issue by focusing on a coming of age story.
Ainu Mosir is screening at Helsinki Cine Aasia
The young boy in question is 14-year-old Kanto, a descendant of Japan's indigenous people, who has just lost his father and is feeling completely out of place in the traditional Ainu community he lives in. His mother, who runs a souvenir in the preserved town, is willing to follow him in as the boy wants to move away for high school, but at the same time is perplexed about his denial to follow the Ainu ways.
The local community welcomes tourists during the day who want to know about the Ainu culture and roam the forests of the area, somewhat making a living through their own exotification, as the various interactions of Kanto's mother with both Japanese and foreign tourists highlight.. At the same time, they try to preserve their culture, parts of which have become illegal, as the Iomante, a ceremony in which a brown bear is raised for two years before it is ritually sacrificed. As the movie begins, the town council is pondering whether to go through with the ritual, while a Japanese journalist who roams the area (played by the omnipresent Lily Franky) is cautioning them about the whole deal.
One of the leaders of the community, Debo, is for the commencing of the ceremony and is actually raising a bear in a secluded area, which is reached through a path in the forest the Ainu consider a pass between this world and the afterworld. Debo notices Kanto's frustration and assumes the role of the mentor to their ways for the teenage boy, eventually letting him meet the bear and asking him to take care of it together. He fails to tell him the truth about the ceremony though.
Takeshi Fukunaga directs a film whose narrative unfolds in two intermingling axes, one following a path towards the social drama and the other towards the documentary. The second aspect is presented rather eloquently, as Fukunaga highlights the current lives of the Ainu, including their rituals, their beliefs (Nothing on Earth is Without Purpose), the harmony with nature, but also the difficulties they face in the ever changing modern world.
Sean Prince Williams's cinematography in that regard is excellent, with his portraying all the aforementioned and the interactions of the locals with tourists with realism and artistry, while taking advantage of the rural beauties of the area to include a number of images of intense beauty.
Furthermore, the way some elements, like the various festivals and the rock'n'roll band the boy is a member of are quite memorable, particularly regarding the rendition of “Johnny B. Goode”, which is bound to stay on mind.
Eventually, however, the documentary part takes its toll on the drama, which feels somewhat underdeveloped, particularly regarding the coming of age aspect, since Kanto is mostly used to depict some of the aforementioned elements than a full-fledged character, although both Kanto Shimokura in the role and Debo Akibe as Debo do a rather convincing job presenting their characters with a realism that suits the overall aesthetics. The concept surrounding Iomante adds a sense of mystery that benefits the narrative, but it could have been handled in better fashion, if what was going to happen was not so evident to the viewer from the beginning, which would allow empathizing with Kanto's feelings and would communicate a sense of shock.
In that regard, the editing by Keiko Deguchi and Takeshi Fukunaga could have handled the two main elements a bit better, particularly in the transition from one to the other, while the supernatural/surrealistic moments, although beautiful, seem somewhat misplaced.
“Ainu Mosir” has some issues when it moves beyond its documentary-like premises, but the non-exotification approach Fukunaga implements, the thorough and realistic portrait of Ainu life nowadays, and the visuals of the movie definitely compensate, resulting in a rather interesting film.
