Kakera: A Piece of Our Life

This wistful and amiable May-to-December romance sees glum college student Haru (Hikari Mitsushima) ditch her boorish boyfriend and embrace her inner lesbian. Once Haru is propositioned in a coffee shop by peppy prosthetic-limb maker Riko (Eriko Nakamura), it’s not long before the pair are feverishly texting each other trying to determine if this is The Real Deal. Avoiding the platitudes usually associated with the teens-in-love genre, debut director Andô Momoko is mindful of the small, private moments that can alert us of future disquiet within a relationship. It comes as little surprise that the film is adapted from a manga (by Erica Sakurazawa): the blunt, square-on shooting style and leisurely paced edits give the impression of scanning a comic book. And while the rambling story prevents it from being truly penetrating, the bittersweet tone and quiet performances make for a gratifying attempt to decipher the mysteries of love.