Drive My Car (2021) Movie Review
I had regrettably never seen anything from director Ryûsuke Hamaguchi but I was anxious to see Drive My Car because it had been garnering so much buzz during awards season. Drive My Car is adapted from a short story by Murakami Haruki which is ironic because the run time of the film is two hours and fifty-nine minutes. Yûsuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima) is a theater director and actor. He is married to Oto (Reika Kirishima), a television writer. The two have an intensely intimate relationship that seems to be a solid marriage. Oto has a tendency to tell stories aloud as she fleshes out ideas for her scripts. Both people are artistic and support each other’s dreams and ambitions. One day when Kafuku comes home unexpectedly, he finds Oto having sex with another man but proceeds as if everything is normal the next day. When tragedy strikes, Kafuku’s life is interrupted.
Two years pass and he is invited to have a residency in Hiroshima to put on Anton Chekhov’s play, Uncle Vanya. While he is in residency there, they will not permit him to drive. He reluctantly agrees to be driven by a young woman named Misaki (Tôko Miura). Misaki matches Kafuku’s stoicism and quiet outward demeanor. During their hour-long drives to and from the rehearsal studio not much is said. Misaki continually offers to play the tape that Kafuku listens to each day. The tape is his wife Oto’s voice, running through lines of Uncle Vanya. Now that Kafuku is alone, the tape is the only way we hear Oto’s voice for the rest of the film and there’s a somberness to it that resonates. The interactions between Misaki and Kafuku evolve after a dinner when Kafuku praises her driving abilities. A barrier has been removed and the two begin to slowly open up to each other. Both have grief, trauma, and sadness that they are trying to overcome. There is a shared but unspoken understanding of each other that unfurls as they spend time together.
Drive My Car, at its core, explores relationships. Kafuku and Oto’s relationship is complex and we see Kafuku trying to parcel out what it means to be in love and to care for someone deeply. Kafuku and Misaki relate to each other on a different intimate level and each is content to let the other just be until they’re ready to open up. Kafuku’s relationship with his actors, mainly Kôji (Masaki Okada) who has a past with Oto, is treacherous at times. Each relationship brings something new to the table for both the viewer and for Kafuku.
In Uncle Vanya, each actor speaks a different language. Some speak Japanese, some Korean, and one even uses Korean Sign Language. The actors may not understand the words of what the others are saying, but they can still feel it and react to it. So much of Drive My Car’s themes and takeaways come from the unspoken. How much does verbal language ensure that you are understood and accepted? How much of your inner demons, fears, and regrets can you actually put into words? Hamaguchi explores these ideas by letting scenes unfold naturally and slowly. Each character has a secret inner world that is exposed when the time is right. Drive My Car is long but the pacing stays on track and you likely won’t notice the lengthy run time. This is a quietly explosive film that will give you much to think about as you return to your daily life.
You’ll like this film if:
1. You like Japanese cinema
2. You enjoy long, slow paced stories
3. You’re interested in exploring characters inner worlds
