Hirokazu Koreeda is a director who shows a very different side of Japanese society in his films. Instead of stories about incredible people in unusual situations or even normal middle class people, he often focuses on the margins...folks who don't quite fit in to society. Thieves, lepers, and gamblers are more Koreeda's sort!
In "After the Storm", Koreeda focuses on a man who by almost any standard is a total loser. Shinoda has lost his wife and he longs to be involved in his son's life...but not enough to straighten up his life. Nearly everything he earns from a lousy job as a cheap detective goes towards gambling. It's sad, because long ago, he sold a novel...but since then he's done nothing of any value. The film follows him over time...and you see that essentially he's not going to change.
Of all the Koreeda films I've seen, this one was the most difficult to watch. It wasn't because the leading character was a bit of a weasel. It's more because the pacing is so slow...almost glacially slow. Well made...but slow!
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