Yu Kajino returns with another experimental feature with “A Weather Report.” Having previously directed “Ahum,” the director has an established artistic admiration for ambiance and melancholy, which is very prominent in his newest project. Here, Kajino aims for a more story-centered road film. Yet, the final product is a major case of style over substance that could have balanced character drama.
A Weather Report is screening at Osaka Asian Film Festival
Storywise, 18-year-old high school graduate Hikari travels alone from Niigata to Tokyo to meet her father, Naohide, for the first time. Years prior, Naohide had met Mayumi, Hikari's mother, in Shinjuku, where they fell in love, and she got pregnant. Yet, things didn't turn out well, and her mom was left to raise the child alone while the father left the picture to enter a new relationship and pursue a career as a screenwriter, earning acclaim for a successful J-drama. Their now adult child wants to get to know her dad and attempt to have her parents reconcile the past.
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“A Weather Report” sets itself up to be a character-driven drama, yet it never follows through on effectively delivering. Yu Kajino captures a melancholic atmosphere meant to emphasize the emotions of the narrative and its players, but there is never a sense of progression. Any supposed development feels incredibly rushed, forcefully delivered, and emotionally cold. Naohide is written to be an imperfect man coming to terms with his past mistakes and realizing his greater dedication to his career than being present for his illegitimate offspring, now trying to make amends for those errors. However, his intended arc feels underwritten, with any planned redemption feeling unearned. The issue of underdeveloped writing extends to the other characters, including Hikari, who is trying to have a relationship with her dad, and her mother, Mayumi, confronting the man who abandoned her and their child. It is as if the screenplay asks the audience to care but never gives reasons beyond surface-level details.
Flawed writing and bland characters make this road movie's intended journey tedious, yet unimpressive performances further dampen the experience. Even with talented actors like Ryuta Furuya, Nanami Mitsuya and Ai Sasamine, the acting is distractingly wooden. No one feels like they truly become their role, with many moments feeling like the cast merely reads off the script.
If there is a positive worth highlighting, the film is visually stunning, with exceptional cinematography and a nice variety of indoor and outdoor locations in Niigata and Oiso. There's also a decent attempt at producing an ambient atmosphere. How weather is utilized as the four seasons change encompasses the general tone of a scene well-played, and the music score helps as well.
“A Weather Report” is beautifully shot, but its lackluster storytelling and characters result in an underwhelming road movie. A promising premise is teased, yet the movie fails to make the resulting conflicts interesting. It may be a great-looking film, but no amount of nice scenarios and occasional atmospheric ambiance are enough to make up for its shortcomings.
