Film Review: Oh Lucy! (2017)
The first two-thirds of Atsuko Hirayanagiโsย Oh Lucy!ย is something of a quirky mid-life crisis, odd couple road movie with a hefty dose of clever culture shock faux pas. Hirayanagi (who co-wrote the film with Boris Frumin) gives us plenty of subtle, and not so subtle hints at the underlying tragedy of her main character, Setsuko (Shinobu Terajima, in an outstanding performance), but does so craftily and sparingly. We get to know Setsuko and root for her through her triumphs and fumbles, even if sheโs far from perfect and possibly a bit delusional.ย Oh Lucy!ย is a good film with plenty of style and substance to grab onto.
Setsuko is an unhappy 40-something office worker living alone in Tokyo. Her only friend seems to be her niece, Mika (Shiori Kutsuna), who cons Setsuko into taking up the debt she owes for English lessons she no longer wants. Setsuko reluctantly agrees and soon finds herself in an unorthodox English class taught by John (Josh Hartnett) who gives her the โAmericanโ name, โLucy.โ Sheโs joined by โTomโ (Koji Yakusho), another student in the class, who enjoys practicing under Johnโs unique tutelage. Before long, John has run off to America with Miko, causing Setsuko and Mikaโs mother, Ayako (Kaho Minami) to follow in search of her. Did I mention that Setsuko is in love with John? She is, and this naturally complicates things.
Despite its comedic and quirky faรงade,ย Oh Lucy! is a character study of a woman in trouble. Setsuko doesnโt understand how her actions affect those around her, and she may not care. Her life is so mundane and repetitive that a brief encounter with someone different sends her halfway around the world on a momentโs notice. Sheโs desperate to find something, some kind of meaning. Whether she achieves this is up to you, as the ending is left brilliantly open to interpretation.
It doesnโt take long for us to realize that, when properly motivated, Setsuko is a bull in a china shop to those in her immediate vicinity. She hides in plain sight, like a mouse in the corner, but is capable of a cruel honesty that gets her in trouble more than once. She doesnโt seem capable of knowing when to hold back and when to let loose, or at whom to direct her outbursts. Sheโs a ball of anger and depression with no realistic outlet, so itโs off to America on an ill-conceived road trip to find her niece? Or maybe itโs to find John. You decide.
Oh Lucy!ย works just fine as the quirky fish out of water story it starts out as, but it has a deeper darkness. That darkness creeps up, finally revealing itself in its entirety in a flash. Suddenly, the film has come full circle and itโs easy to see that youโve been watching something much more than just a couple of Japanese ladies trying to make it in southern California. Thereโs moreโa whole lot more.
Iโm excited to see womenโs perspectives on film. Their treatment of male characters tends to be much more accurate than male directorโs treatment of women has been over the last hundred years of filmโa trend I think weโre likely to see continue. Hirayanagi isnโt cruel to men. She doesnโt depict them as evil, just flawed in a more realistic way than weโre used to seeing. These flaws also arenโt dwelled upon. The men donโt get a chance to redeem themselves, to explain it all away. They made their choices just like everybody else. Itโs a nice touch.
