Title: Saikai Paradise
Foreign Title: 西海楽園
Year: 2025
Country: Japan
Language: In Japanese with English subtitles
Director and Credits: Keiko Tsuruoka
Cast: Kazunari Yanagitani, Misaki Kinoshita, Hiroki Uehara, Hiroyuki Nagami, Shota Tashima, Mayumi Yanagitani
Having enjoyed Tsugaru Lacquer Girl at VIFF in 2023, I was looking forward to reviewing Keiko Tsuruoka’s new film at this year’s festival. I admired her strong focus on attention to detail and focus on the generation gap with traditions and ceremonies. I read that all three of her films have been shot in the Nagasaki Prefecture with its cultural landscapes and rich history with the outside world all the way back to the EDO period. While the two stories in the film are quite different in their narrative, there are many similarities. The attention to detail in lacquer making compares with some wonderful, detailed scenes of tofu making by Kazu’s mother, in the opening scenes of Saikai Paradise. Both films deal with traditional methods and the livelihoods of parents and whether their children will abandon them or continue the traditions.
Following the opening scene we meet Kazu, who is an actor living in Tokyo, and has just returned to Saikai after being away for some time. He is with a friend Uehara from Tokyo. Kazu is visiting his family and friends that he grew up with in this small city in the Nagasaki Prefecture. They are picked up from the airport by Hira, another close friend. Uehara has never visited this area. Hira expects to see Kazu’s fiancé and asks about her. Kazu explains it is complicated but gives no details. It is evident that Kazu is troubled by something and is not telling the full story. They stop for lunch and continue on, admiring the scenery, stopping at a dam and showing Uehara the sights. The scenery and landscapes of this area are beautifully filmed and uniquely different.
They eventually arrive at Kazu’s mother’s house to a warm welcome. There is no discussion about Kazu’s fiancé. They eat and then head off to one of Kazu’s friends Shota who has just had a baby. Shota’s wife again brings up the subject of Kazu’ s fiancé, but Kazu just answers “Sorry, it is just me”. They meet Miki, a cousin of Shota’s wife. They watch one of Kazu’s films that he has a lead in in. Kazu seems quiet and looks more troubled. After some small talk, Kazu suddenly jumps up and says, “let’s go to the beach”. We do not see them travelling to the beach and instead the scene is replaced with some extremely effective night scenes and suspenseful music, indicating something is about to change. We find out soon after: Standing on a pier, Kazu blurts out that the wedding is off. He apologizes profusely and explains that they broke up 6 months ago. Shota starts questioning him, but Hira tells him to lay off. Kazu apologizes again and wants to go get some fireworks, but everyone is shocked and not up to celebrating. Hira drives them home. Kazu cannot sleep and takes a walk past the tofu factory with a look of sadness, knowing that he will never want to come back and help his mom in the factory.
The next day Kazu and Uehara, after visiting the cemetery and spending some time on the the beach, visit Kazu’s grandfather who is now 100 years old. There are 20 elderly seniors who have turned 100 in Saikai. He discusses all the activities he does to keep up with his friends. He remarks that the quietness of Saikai makes this possible. His days are full.
This remarkable scene really resonated with me after we visited Japan for the first time earlier this year. Most surprising was that elderly citizens are still employed, assisting tourists and the population, directing people to line up separately for buses or trains or giving tourist information. They are also employed to protect pedestrians on the sidewalks while controlling trucks entering buildings. They are so proud of what they do and very respectful and courteous!
In the evening, Kazu and Uehara attend a traditional ceremony with all the family and friends. After 2 days Uehara travels back to Tokyo for work. The next evening, Kazu by chance meets Miki while strolling near the pier. They watch a traditional ceremony of lanterns and boats shimmering in the moonlight. They discuss the ceremonies and traditions and seem to be getting along well. The following day Hira and Kazu take Miki on a sightseeing trip. They visit the abandoned Saikai Paradise amusement park with some awkward scenes with Kazu when finding a building full of Buddhist statues. Miki is very open and direct with discussions with Kazu. He remarks how direct Miki’s questions are! However, he is not offended.
The closing scene returns to the tofu factory with Kazu’s mother tasting the tofu in the factory and Kazu helping, as he promised the night before. His brother Ryuii comes in and together they say goodbye to their mother, as she heads out to sell her tofu. The final scene shows Kazu and Ryuii walking back from the factory. Ryuii who has not spoken much with Kazu, offers to take Kazu to the airport and not to worry as he will take over the tofu factory.
Keiko Tsuruoka has directed, scripted, shot, and edited a remarkable film with a strong cast. It needs to be seen!
