Love Letter

Director: Shunji Iwai

1995 / 115min / 4K DCP

One of the most beloved directorial debuts of the 1990s and a popular sensation in Japan and beyond, Iwai’s epistolary drama—first released in the US as When I Close My Eyes and playing here in a new 4K restoration—stars Miho Nakayama, in a dual role, as both widowed fiancée Hiroko and librarian Itsuki, a former classmate of Hiroko’s deceased lover, together keeping alive the memory of the departed in a correspondence, begun by accident, that brings many a faded memory into focus. A work of gentle melodiousness and forceful feeling, of unexpected digressions and beautifully modulated tonal shifts, and, thanks to cinematographer Noboru Shinoda’s exquisite eye for the snowy landscape of Hokkaido, of formidable pictorial beauty.

Distributor: Film Movement

The picture was scanned in 4K from the original camera negative, with color grading supervised by the director. For the sound, while based on a digital 5.1-channel mix, the center channel retains the original film audio in accordance with the director’s preference.

"Q&A with director Shunji Iwai on Friday, June 5th Introduction by Shunji Iwai on Saturday, June 6th

Part of The World at Full Volume The Cinema of Shunji Iwai