Japanese Story Movie Review: Lighting, Art Direction

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Japanese story movie review
Japanese story is an Australian romantic film produced in 2003 and directed by Sue Brook from a script written by Alison Tilson. The movie is set entirely in the outback in Australia and is the most iconic film that signifies the national images (Sheckels 107). The love story is about geologist Sandy Edwards, who is assigned to take care of Tachibana Hiromistu a Japanese executive visiting Australia showing him the vast land in the western remote Pilbara region where there is a large deposit of iron ore being mined (O'Sullivan 6).
Sandy is assigned to give Tachibana a tour of the steelworks and ore fields in the northwest parts of the country. (O'Sullivan 7) Even though the two did not hit off well in the beginning as the young Japanese, who is chauvinist, treats sandy like a chauffeur. Sandy disliked foreigner and their cultural abyss, but when they find themselves alone in the desert, the two discover many things about their different culture and themselves (O'Sullivan 7).
Review
The film presents a universal theme of love; it is an emotional tour that canvasses how love can cross all boundaries of culture, language tradition, and social taboos. The film was shot in the Pilbara Desert in the western parts of Australia known for its vast landscape. The desert looks amazing, but deceptively hostile for the characters (French 655). The film genre mainly explores love based on different cultures, presenting two people from two different backgrounds exploring events from the first time they meet until the time when the superficial layers that divide them are uncovered (French 656). The intelligent direction and the insightful script hone straight to the heart, allowing the audience to immediately connect with the main characters in the film (French 657).
Toni Collete is a character that rivets and brings an extraordinary depth and complexity to the film. Her face shows every emotion, including her infectious smile. The audience can feel her excitement, her anguish, anger and the overwhelming mountain of emotions (French 657). Tachibana Hiromistu represents a typical Japanese businessperson with his enormous suitcase waiting for Sandy to load it into the rented car (French 657). He commands Sandy to drive into the desert without considering Sandy's protests. They eventually get stranded on a dusty stretch of road. The angry friction between the two softens into romance (French 658).
Hiromistu’s character is strengthened when the film recalls the politics within the pacific areas during the World War II. The film explores memories of national events from personal experience, revealing the negative perception of the local about Japanese. In the main scene, Sandy and Hiromostu take a trip to the desert lake (O'Sullivan 7). An elderly Australian guide recalls his fear and resentment revealing his suspicion of Japanese due to the fear of an invasion that happened during the war; the guide dislikes the fact that he still relies on tourists from Japan for his livelihood (O'Sullivan 8).
The film theme is simple, but presented uniquely, the film is about the change of perception and the director's ability to tear through the scope of emotions from a pr...