Warm Water Under a Red Bridge
Brimming with magical realism, sensuality, and humor, the final film by revered filmmaker Shohei Imamura tells the story of Yosuke Sasano (Koji Yakusho), an unemployed salaryman who arrives in a remote fishing village following a rumor of hidden treasure. Instead, he meets Saeko Aizawa (Misa Shimizu), a charming and unusual woman with a unique problem: a well of warm water inside of her longing for release. Saeko faces both shame and adoration for her condition, which the local anglers believe feeds the river and its fish. Intrigued and enamored, Yosuke decides to take up a new life as a fisherman. Through their passionate affair, Imamura paints a picture of longing, fantasy and the search for true happiness in the most unexpected of places.
Cast
- Kôji Yakusho
- Misa Shimizu
Blu-ray Features
BONUS FEATURES:
Messy and Juicy video essay by author and film curator Tom Vick
16-page booklet with new essay by film scholar and writer Hwang Kyunmin
Discs: 1
- "An enlightening, even liberating, experience."
- "Like its bizarre heroine, it irrigates our souls."
- "Imamura has said that Warm Water Under a Red Bridge is a poem to the enduring strengths of women. It may also be the best sex comedy about environmental pollution ever made."
- "A deep and meaningful film."
- "Imamura's delight in the infinite oddity of men and women is goofy; it's also, at heart, reverent."
- "Nonchalantly freaky and uncommonly pleasurable, Warm Water may well be the year's best and most unpredictable comedy."
- "Charmingly bizarre slice of magic realism."
- "A tasty slice of droll whimsy."
- "A delirious celebration of the female orgasm."
- "A weird and wonderful comedy."
Awards & Recognition
Best Actor
Chicago Int'l. Film Festival
Palme d'or
Cannes Film Festival
Best Actor
Awards of the Japanese Academy
Toronto Int'l. Film Festival
New York Film Festival
Palm Springs Int'l. Film Festival