While high on my “Ryoko Kobayashi” fan mode after her terrific performance in the supernatural revenge thriller MAOU, I found she’d starred in a similarly spooky Twilight-Zone styled movie called ZOO in one of its five stories. That sounded interesting, and, happily enough, I was able to acquire a nice subtitled version over at DLAzn’s generous Asian Drama and Movie site.
Well, in the end, Ryoko’s story (a tale about a set of twins, both played by her) ended up being so-so, and I’m sad to say that statement rang true for most of the other segments, too. In fact out of the five, I only really liked a couple of them- the story SEVEN ROOMS starring Yui ichikawa as an abducted girl in a mysterious holding cell, and segment Four which, in direct contrast to the other tales, was a short clip that was completely animated.
It was this story that TOTALLY MADE THE MOVIE FOR ME!
This chapter was called HIDAMARI NO SHI, a story written and animated by Mizusaki Junpei and featuring perfect voice acting by Suzuki Kasumi and Suwaru Ryu. Hidamari No Shi tells a tale of a Scientist and his Robot Girl creation in a futuristic world not so different from our own...
The story opens with the girl robot awakening for the first time as she is introduced to her creator. The man has created this girl to cook, clean, and tend to the multitude of household chores, as well as other tasks that become clearer as time moves on. The girl accepts this readily and is ready to begin her new life.
She is told “Happy Birthday” as she is led to the house that will become her new home, and right off the bat she is learning how to prepare coffee, eager to learn all there is to do. Though she possesses an intelligent mind (as befitting any young girl), her naivety and clinical observations make her instantly likeable, and we can’t wait to join her on her learning expedition. In one scene, she is given coffee to drink and after one sip, states, “I dislike this taste.” After dropping in a cube of sugar, she happily says, “The increased sweetness makes it easier for my body to absorb it naturally” which of course is her own way of saying it’s yummy!
The girl is wide-eyed and curious about situations and the things around her, and the conversation between the two as the man explains each new discovery with her is both bittersweet and poignant as they cover various things like life and death…as well as the fate of humankind in the years gone by.
The great charm of this clip is the pacing. As the girl goes about her daily life, the viewer is allowed to look about and take in the scenery along with her, examining what she is examining, reacting as she reacts. Every action is deliberate and precise, every sentence of dialog meaningful and heartfelt, and as I’ve stated before, the voice talent is just awesome, fully fleshing out the animated characters onscreen and making the girl seem real and believable.
The story of HIDAMARI NO SHI is ultimately a philosophical one, for though the girl’s days are spent doing chores like laundry, tending the garden and fetching the water, there are also rabbits and butterflies in her life to observe and chase, sunrises and sunsets to experience, and the quiet, beautiful sound of wind-chimes as they tinkle in the breeze. Yes, he’s created her to cook and to clean, but beneath it all is the lesson he wants her to learn most, and that is the joy and gratitude of simply being alive.