Obayashi’s warm, bustling, slice-of-life picture, based on the real-life story of a Tokyo greengrocer who put his own livelihood at risk to extend help to a succession of poor Chinese exchange students in Japan, tapped into widespread feelings of anxiety and anger in the aftermath of the events of Tiananmen Square upon its initial release 35 years ago. A tender, populist drama brimming with anarchic, comic energy—in a vital new restoration—bringing together Obayashi regulars like Yasufumi Hayashi and Toru Minegishi with the relatively little-known Bengal, who is excellent in the central role of the small businessman for whom altruism becomes a potentially destructive obsession.

Beijing Watermelon opens at Metrograph Friday, June 7 as part of Nobuhiko Obayashi x 3.