The idyllic routine of a Tokyo toilet cleaner in a film by classic German director Wim Wenders.
Hirayama (Kōji Yakusho) is a middle-aged man who works as a cleaner in Tokyo’s public toilets. He wakes up before sunrise and, always with a slight smile on his face, sets off on his daily rounds on a little truck. On the way he listens to classic rock and pop on audio cassettes, and by his bed there are books by William Faulkner or Patricia Highsmith. For others, Hirayama’s Buddhist approach to life and conscious choice of this type of work is a mystery. But no one asks him anything, and in the bar that he visits day after day they always pour him a ritual evening drink. One day Hirayama’s niece comes to visit and disrupts his stable routine. She also reminds him of his past life, which he had decided to abandon forever.
After a series of uncompleted features, Wenders has returned with what may be his most narratively comprehensible and familiar film. The Japanese city authorities commissioned Wenders to make a short to promote the contemporary system of public toilets in Tokyo. The civil servants could not have imagined that the project would develop into a feature and be scheduled in the main competition at the Cannes Film Festival 2023. At Cannes, actor Kōji Yakusho won the award for best male role. In Wenders’ patient exploration of the routine of his character there is something of the view of a talented documentary maker, which Wenders has shown himself to be over a long career. Seen through his lens, Tokyo is not a deafeningly noisy city that knocks you off your feet with its rhythm. It is a city that, like the protagonist, lives according to rules and inviolable canons, which is wise and always ready to help those who live there.
The film will be shown in Japanese with Russian subtitles.
Perfect Days
Director Wim Wenders
Japan, 2023, 123 min. 18+
