They Say Nothing Stays the Same(HKAFF 2019)

Not content to just be one of Japan’s most accomplished actors, Odagiri Joe makes his feature-length directorial debut with a beautifully ruminative period drama. For years, Toichi has ferried people between a mountain village and a nearby town, but times are changing. A bridge is being built and soon the aged boatman's services will not be needed. More unexpected changes occur after he rescues a mysterious girl. Odagiri, who also wrote the film’s script, gathers top names – cinematographer Christopher Doyle, costume designer Wada Emi, composer Tigran Hamasyan – to create a rich and languorous portrait of a bygone way of life that is about to be lost to the tides of time.