Critics’ Week
Over the weekend, I posted one of my final reviews from this year’s Cannes Film Festival, the Japanese drama Tenzo, a superb 59-minute piece of work that debuted during the Cannes off-shoot, Critics’ Week earlier this month. Now, we can share a world exclusive clip from the film.
Here’s the synopsis for Tenzo, which is brought to the screen by the hugely talented Katsuya Tomita.
Two young monks, Chiken and Ryûgyô, return to their childhood temples after completing their training at the dojo of the Sôtô Buddhist school. Ten years later, in the face of the socio-economic crisis, both monks, under different guises, have taken on more of a community role. Chiken volunteers on a suicide prevention hotline through his Yamanashi temple and through his religion has learnt that the synchronicity of food and nature can have a positive impact on his family’s health. In Fukushima, Ryûgyô, whose family and temple were devastated by the tsunami, and still himself haunted by this tragedy, comforts victims living in temporary shelters and helps clean-up the soil as a worker.
Related: Tenzo review [Cannes]
My full review is up at the end of the link above, but here’s a taster.
Totally immersive, pure, naturalistic filmmaking at its best, well deserved of its slot at the festival, and definitely one to seek out.
Watch our exclusive clip below.
