Ryûsuke Hamaguchi is currently promoting the U.S. release of his 2009 film, “Passion.” I haven’t seen it yet, but would love to.
Shot as his thesis film at the Tokyo University of the Arts, “Passion” was Hamaguchi’s second film. It’s only now opening for its North American theatrical run on Friday, April 14 at Film at Lincoln Center.
Speaking to The Film Stage, Hamaguchi also elaborated on his much-rumoured “Our Apprenticeship,” which was supposed to be his next film after “Drive My Car,” but it seems as though it’s been scrapped:
I’m baffled by people asking me if it’s going to be my next film. I submitted a proposal to the 2019 Hong Kong Film Market and received a production award. One of the conditions was that the plot contained a play or production using foreign languages. I used that element in Drive My Car, which is why I don’t feel very motivated to create another film that has a very similar element.
Hamaguchi went on to add that it’s quite difficult making films in Japan and that he is now working on a new film, but isn’t ready to share any details just yet.
The only thing I can say about my next film is that I want to continue experimenting with smaller projects, finding discoveries that way.
If you remember, I had written about “Our Apprenticeship,” which was set in France and would have been his first non-Japanese/Korean production. Featuring many queer characters as they each learn each other’s languages, it was going to feature a young cast composed of a gay French couple, a Syrian, a Belgian, a South Korean and Japanese woman at its center.
Hamaguchi began collecting funding on the film in 2019. After an incredible 2021, pandemic plans however halted a Paris-set shoot.
The Japanese director has really come into his own since “Drive My Car” triumphed at Cannes and even received a Best Picture nominations at the Oscars.
His first few films, the critically-acclaimed 5-hour “Happy Hour” (didn’t see it) and the underrated “Asako 1 & 2” set the stage for the banner year that he had. Also his “other” 2021 film, the entertaining triptych “Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy,” is well worth a look — I find it to be even better than “Drive My Car.”
Zeller’s feature debut, “The Father,” was an acclaimed and Oscar-winning film. Many believe he struck out with his sophomore effort, 2022’s critically maligned “The Son.” This is another miss.