Sarusuberi: Miss Hokusai

Sarusuberi is not a film I believe anyone can enjoy, but I have no reservations about calling it a work of art. Not only is it a beautiful film overall, the experience it provides in both its characters and its setting is poignant and thought-provoking despite its straight-forwardness, something that is regrettably rare in major feature-length anime releases.

Sarusuberi has neither a main conflict nor a linear narrative, instead made up of a handful of shorter stories that are loosely held together by O-Ei, the film's central character. It is difficult to asses the story's effectiveness, because there isn't really a particular "goal" that it tries ... to achieve, thus no tangible criteria to judge it against. I did think, however, that each section of the movie had something of interest in it, was well-paced, and never felt pointless.

The format also leads to the overall tone of the completed film being very subdued, with virtually none of the melodrama one would expect out of an anime. Where the movie gets its flair from are, in my opinion, the art, as well as the masterfully done sequences of magical realism woven throughout. There aren't many, but when they do appear these sequences are breathtaking, effectively adding some variation in what could have easily become a monotonous film.

Due to the lack of a real plot, it's also difficult to asses the film's characters. While there is little development for most of them (though O-Ei does receive some, subtly but powerfully so,) it can also be said that they aren't really meant to undergo much development in the first place. All I can say is that I believe the film is meant to be experienced with the characters rather than following them as they try to get from Point A to Point B, and for this purpose most of the characters are interesting and unique (though not always likeable, which in my opinion is a good thing), even though some appear only briefly.

The animation, art, and sound in this film are all exceptional. Perhaps due to the presence of O-Nao, O-Ei's blind sister, this film is truly a sensory experience. So much attention is paid to the details in the scenes where she appears - everything from footsteps, the crackling of woven grass, the creaking of a great wooden bridge - that it adds a touch of realism to the animation. A number of scenes delightfully weave some of Hokusai's actual art into the visuals, creating some of the most potent scenes of the film. Edo period Japan is crafted so immersively that it would be a joy to watch the film even for just that purpose.

The only thing about this movie I'm not sure that I loved was the music. The film makes use of a more traditional orchestral soundtrack, with sections using traditional Japanese music, and, strangely, in a couple of scenes, electric guitar riffs. While I understand what the film could have been going for - perhaps showing O-Ei's character at odds with the norms of her time, I found it rather jarring to hear.

Not all will have the patience for or the interest in this kind of film, but I would recommend Sarusuberi to fans of historical anime, animation, and subdued slice-of-life shows of the non-moe variety. It is a beautiful, subtle, intelligent film that doesn't try too hard to be any of those three, which is what, I believe, makes it so excellent.

While the vast majority of people must have heard at least one time in their life about Hokusai, the famous painter, little of them know about his talented daughter, O-Ei.

So, maybe now you are interested in knowing the life of this mysterious unknown woman? Maybe you want to see the movie to find the truth and discover her life from her young age to her death...well, if that's the case, you might end up to be a little disappointed by this movie ^^ .

But here, I'll try to tell you why you should watch it nonetheless and what is in fact the qualities (and the ... little minor default) of this movie:


See, Miss Hokusai, while being centered around the figure of O-Ei, isn't about her life, instead the movie take the gamble to opt for a slice of life aspect, developing around little separated scenes involving the little crew of marginal painter composed of Tetsuzo (more known by the name of Hokusai) the monolithic eccentric artist, and his disciples, including O-Ei.
The movie also didn't chose to make the relationship daughter-father into a central aspect, and the hint about the link of the two character is discreetly spread through the movie instead.

Then about those different scenes I'm talking about, they can mostly be divided into two categories:

First the one including Hokusai, one of his slightly drunken disciple (provider of some of the comical aspect of the movie) and O-Ei. These moments follow the crew involved in problems and mystery that they will solve with painting. In them, some supernatural and fantastic aspect are surprisingly very present, would it be a menacing dragon lurking in the dark clouds of the sky, or the spirit of a geisha coming out of her body at night.

These moments, while being creative and unexpected, are not the best in the movie, instead, the real highlight of this movie come from the second type of scene:

In them, we discover O-nao, the younger sister of O-Ei, who had the misfortune to be born blind. These moments, with O-Ei walking around, "showing" O-nao the living life of the people traveling a pond, or listening to the silent in a snowy day, are very meaningful and powerful moments.
In fact, those moments reveal one of the best quality of this movie: the emotion is never expressed directly in a frontal way, with heavy talk and shows of tears, but by little touch, when O-Ei warmly touched her sisters little hands or when the screen simply took the time to show us her face, slightly smiling looking at her younger sister playing in the snow, discovering the discreet wonders of everyday life.
The relation between O-nao and her father, never showing up to her, is also a very impactful aspect of the movie, even if never addressed frontally.


But what about the music? Well it might be the weakest point of the movie. The movie take the bet on using rock instrumental music and sound, surely to try to emphasis on the modernity and strong whiled feminism of O-Ei...and while the intention is visible, the result don't match and feel out of place. Other than that, the sound and music are quite rare and most of the time the scene will be composed of the character talking without ambient music or much sound, which accentuate the slow pacing of the movie (while it's not really a default, it should be mentioned for those reluctant to watch a movie without action like this, that they might find boring).


I didn't talked much about O-Ei in herself, but even if I might have made clear that the movie is not really about developing her character or make us enter in her life completely, she stays a very refreshing and free woman, a type of character that is not that often seen in anime, and it's also one of the good points of this movie.



To summarize: if you like slice of life anime, if you want to take a look and feel what life in the end of the Edo periodeperiod was like, then you should watch this movie and will surely enjoy it.

Thank you for reading this review to the end.

“nineteenth century Japan was a culturally dynamic society with much in common with its present-day counterpart. Many artists of the time, starting from Hokusai and his daughter O-Ei, had personalities and lives more interesting than any novelist could conceive."

depicting the life of Katsushika Hokusai, Sarusuberi, however, is far more than the eye meets. the film centres around O-Ei, daughter of the extraordinary artist Tetsuzo, was a woodblock artist herself, painting with and for her father.

more than just being and aging lonely man, Tetsuzo and his “cowardice”, as O-Ei so elegantly put, tends to isolate himself, even through he lives with O-Ei ... and his twit apprentice. O-Nao, his other daughter, blind since birth feels reluctant towards her father, thinking he might hate her, all of this because Tetsuzo has this derange with sickness, which makes him absented from the little girl. not only that, but Tetsuzo, in his mid-fifties, renowned all over Japan, paints day and night like a mad-man, making himself more and more apart from the real world.

O-Ei is a devoted older sister, showing the world outside to her blind little sister O-Nao, through the touch of water, the noise of the crowd, the scent of flowers; with this comes a type of love-hate relationship with her father, who deserted home and now lives in a shabby house. simply an act of compassion or the wishes of her mother, O-Ei shares the house with her father and works with him. here you’ll find the classical bijin art and ukiyo-e paintings who fascinated people like Van Gogh. painting with her father since a child, O-Ei grows to be a fantastic artist, though, in her melancholy, it seems to have no fulfilment on her. she’s a caring person, but something seems always off. she’s a character so unique in her own way that you tend to float away with her pensiveness. this film (production i.g) gives us the young seyuu Watababe Anne-san as O-Ei, and Shimizu Shion-chan in the role of O-Nao. it’s always good to have new talents discovered.

along the way you’ll find yourself surrounded by the mystical city of Edo, making the perfect scenario. since this is an adaptation of Sugiura Hinako-sensei’s manga, who was an enthusiast of the ancient Japan, i think the background art is beautifully delineated, from the snowy streets of the city, to the grand Ryogoku Bridge crossing it, making a poetic justice to her name and legacy. now, during the lines and colours, you’ll see, particularly in the woodblock paintings, a superb picturesque of the Edo days, like the splendid asian dragon to the nicest Oiran portrait in red-light district. the Japanese folklore plays an interesting role here, from the tales of dragons to the heaven and hell legends.

it is good to mention that Miss Hokusai won the Mainichi Film Award for Best Animated Feature Film, and the Excellence Prize at the 39th annual Japan Academy Awards. so, why not go back in time and enjoy this singular masterpiece that retracts the passage from Tokugawa to the Meiji era, from Edo to Tokyo… teeming with life, samurai, nobles, artists, townsmen, merchants, courtesans, and a subtle touch of the unnatural, Miss Hokusai unveils a charismatic page in Japanese history spreading through the seasons, one that you may not want to miss.

One of the more impressive animation productions I've yet seen. A particular strength is its subtle character animation, but it succeeds at all it attempts. That makes sense, a film about the great Japanese painter Oei and those in her orbit demands detailed artwork.

Sarusuberi doesn't have great narrative ambitions. It portrays a series of vignettes covering a small portion of the protagonist's life, and doesn't conclude any of the narrative arcs it alludes to. This blunts emotional impact, but focuses the viewer on its themes. It's a reflection on the artistic process, though it has little to say about art itself.

Oei never has any great ... epiphanies, the film instead subtly conveys how her experiences influence her art. She can't draw women in sex scenes convincingly, and the people around her imply it's because of her sexual inexperience. So she goes out to a brothel, and when we next see her drawing erotic art, the woman in it resembles the sex worker she met that day. Most experiences Oei has tie into her art like this, and it provides otherwise disparately connected scenes clear narrative purpose.

The film has some interesting things to say about how a lack of technical proficiency can enhance a work's impact.

Oei's painter kohai Zenjirou's lack of technical skill gives his sex scenes an allure she cannot capture. She’s sure her art is technically superior, so this frustrates her, and to resolve the cognitive dissonance she further invests in her feeling of superiority. She works hard to improve anyway though.

That’s a surprisingly accurate reflection of what visual artists are like. Technically skilled artists are a dime a dozen, as are creatively inspired ones. People who have only technical skill often feel superior to those who only have creative inspiration, vice versa. But a great artist needs both, and regardless of how self-critical they are, they can get better with practice and study.

The dialogue has a satisfying pace that wordlessly informs the viewer as to the personalities and relationships of the characters. The way Oei pauses before answering Zenjirou's questions, but immediately answers Hatsugoro's questions informs us as to her disposition towards them.

Likewise, the editing and sound design inform us as to the thoughts and emotions of Oei's little sister Onao. She's blind, and her mood is different on a summer morning, rich with audible and olfactory stimuli, than on a winter morning, where snow absorbs most sound. This is communicated through careful camerawork and editing, often changing angles to signal that she's picked up on something we expect to be received through visual stimuli.

Explicit symbolism is layered throughout the visual tapestry. This is an East Asian film, so of course flowers are a primary symbolic tool. Many of the backgrounds, effects, and locations replicate the work of the historical Hokusai and Oei. It’s a nice atmospheric touch that works regardless of the viewer’s familiarity with their work.

I greatly appreciate the film's attitude towards sex, sex workers, and erotic art. Sex is generally treated casually throughout the piece, and sex workers are regarded with appropriate respect. Homosexuality is not treated as exceptional or aberrant. Erotic art is considered to be of equal value to all other art, a view I particularly enjoy living in a society that very much looks down on erotic art. I should moderate my praise somewhat, as this is largely reflective of the society it portrays rather than a moral stance of the film, but I still found it refreshing.

The narrative and characters may have only the barest traces of arcs, but this is a carefully constructed film, and it pays off in every important way. It isn't intensely emotional, but it paints an enthralling picture that keeps the viewer engaged throughout its run.

It is a meaningful, worthwhile experience. I recommend.

I just saw this in NYC two days ago and I absolutely loved it! It's a beautiful slice-of-life, episodic narrative which may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I thought it was really touching! It incorporated a lot of aspects of Edo-era art and even some of Hokusai's pieces, like the great wave. I think Keiichi Hara (Colorful, Summer Days with Coo), did an amazing job with the subject matter. Anyone who loves art and unique animation should see this. I think it's coming to a bunch of new theaters in the U.S. this weekend, which is really exciting. If you can-- go check ... out this film!

High-end anime films tend to draw from Hayao Miyazaki's template: fantastical family drama or adventure in an idyllic setting. Keiichi Hara's "Sarusuberi: Miss Hokusai" instead hues closer to Isao Takahata's episodic slice-of-life films, "Only Yesterday" and "My Neighbor the Yamadas".

Sarusuberi follows the daughter and successor of a famous painter as she comes of age, searches for inspiration, refines her craft, grapples with sexuality, and mends a broken family. Without a strong dramatic arc, the film lives or dies on the strength of its setting, characters and individual vignettes.

The worlds of paint, folklore, dreams and history continually collide. An unfinished painting spawns demons. A storm dragon ... is transcribed in brush strokes. Hokusai himself even recites a ghost story that is as abstract as it is evocative. The film not only portrays Edo, but also its folkloric mindset, where painters are only a part of its economy of dreams.

The characters range from wooden to animated. "Miss Hokusai" herself is the former, holding powerful emotions deep within. We latch onto her every glance and turn of the head, desperate for access into her thoughts. Fortunately, the characterization delivers with great detail and finesse. Even the dopey puppy dog that grows with the family is one of the most charismatic I've seen in an animated film.

It's hard to evaluate slice-of-life due to its nature, but I would say Keiichi Hara's "Sarusuberi" fares far better than Sunao Katabuchi's "Mai Mai Shinko" (2009). Isao Takahata, the father of slice-of-life anime, may be retired but his art lives on.

Miss Hokusai is a weird film. Whereas most films will go for a soundtrack that suits the time, here the main theme is this alternative J-rock song. The animation is expressive and unique, interrupted by brief segments of far more expressive and unique art styles, albeit far simpler to boot. It’s a film that tackles religious beliefs, poverty and the rise of independent women in 1800s Japan, all the while not feeling obnoxious about it in the slightest. Despite all of these undeniably brilliant positives, I was left underwhelmed come the anti-climactic ending.

The biggest issue I have with Miss Hokusai is that it doesn’t have ... a plot, and its idea of overcoming this challenging way of presenting its narrative is to overload the viewer with numerous subplots. I like subplots as much as the next guy, but their existence shouldn’t ever take precedence over the plot, and this film is a perfect example of why not. Each subplot is masterfully told with plenty of creativity, yet when they’re all combined without the cohesion of a main storyline the film feels aimless. I’m still waiting for it to start by the time it ends.

And don’t give me that “its slice of life, it isn’t supposed to have a plot” excuse. Just because something is slice of life doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a plot. Even if you’re watching a show and the series as a whole has no story, each episode (of a well made show) should have a self-contained narrative, however basic, which should have some point to it. And, to be fair, you could argue that Miss Hokusai does the same and that I should treat each subplot as an episode of an anime.

The problem with that is that it isn’t a show; it’s a movie. When I watch a show I can take a break after each episode, sometimes the structure of the show will even encourage these breaks. With a movie, you’re meant to stick around to the end. To pause a movie and come back to it a different day directly conflicts with the creator’s intentions. While I personally advocate for death of the author, when the author is the entire structure of the whole medium instead of a singular film, I have to take a step back and say they should have put more thought into the film. If this was presented as a series of shorts, or an OVA I would probably consider it a masterpiece, instead, there is plenty of quality content that struggles to get past the tiresome structure that the movie limits the narrative to.

7/10

This Review is actually the script to this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5nUoqNLKZg

Check that out and subscribe to the channel if you want to see more reviews like it.

A meandering slice-of-life film that sets up numerous plot threads only for most of them to go nowhere. If you're hoping this film will give you much insight into the titular figure's life, you'll leave mostly disappointed. Even the one plot thread that is carried throughout the film, involving the main character's younger sister, falls short of the level of insight you might hope for. Whether this is out of respect, timidity, or if not enough is known about these people to depict their lives in a more solid way, I don't know.

Where the film does succeed is in its depiction of ... moments. Each individual scene works well within itself. They just don't build to anything.

I didn’t see many people mention some stuff, so I decided to leave this as my first review.

Overall, I felt that this movie was quite a unique callback to Japanese history and culture and it seems that was the movie’s main point. It also seems to be based off of a 1980s manga series about the actual O’Ei’s life, but the truth is that not much is actually known about the real woman. This seems to be the reason that the plot seems to meander or have no resolve, and to me it was apparent that it was based on the Japanese genre of ... literature called “I-story”, where it’s more so writing down day to day musings, stories, and thoughts— similar to the historical Japanese novel “The Pillow Book”.

What I admired the most about this movie was how much history during the Edo period was incorporated into the film. I always think back on this movie, especially the scene with the firemen and the fact they all had tattoos (tattoos are currently seen as taboo in Japan so I was surprised to see that here. Apparently pre-Edo period tattoos were used for all sorts of reasons, then when the Edo government restricted the use of tattoos later for criminalization, some people still used it as protection symbols, especially firemen.) There was also a scene where she meets a male prostitute, and it seems he was based off of a “kagema” who were young male sex workers that offered services to both male and female clients.

I really respect this movie for trying its best to reflect the Edo period as best as it could, but also not afraid to show things that I thought would not be shown in a Japanese animation (considering it had some big names attached to it and made it to Netflix, I thought it would be more of a culture propaganda move). I was pleasantly surprised by it. As an amateur history nerd, I liked this movie a lot and would recommend this to anyone interested in Japanese history and culture.

This is an interesting, though at times confusing dive into the life of artists. Hokusai is indeed one of the most famous Japanese artists, whose "Great Wave" is an iconic view known worldwide. Before hearing of this anime I wouldn't have known that he worked alongside one of his daughters. The credits kindly show one painting that is definitely attributed to her, so it is a fact that she has disappeared from art history. As such it's a story worth telling.

The story picks up when O-Ei is already a grown-up young woman, who for some time has lived with her father in his atelier apart ... from her mother and her youngest sister O-Nao. They are surrounded by a small cast of other characters, chiefly other artists who aim for fame by hanging around the great master, and a few clients. All of them seem to be aware that O-Ei is herself a talented artist and collaborates in the creation of her father's works, when she is not delivering the commissions in his stead because he is busy with something else. Yet few, including Hokusai, seem yet to expect for O-Ei to step out of the shadow and to become recognized in her own name. O-Ei acts as narrator to the story, but it also follows her own evolution as an artist and shows different stages of the development of her sensibility through experiences, some happy, others sad.

The life thus chronicled dwells much on Hokusai's eccentricity, a man who appears grumpy for most of the time but is lost to his creative activities. Like certain famous European artists, he seems not to mind much about status or high living, and some of it rubs off on his daughter, who is definitely unconventional by the standard of the period (the early 19th Century, in the final decades of the Tokugawa shogunate). Sometimes Hokusai chides O-Ei for not "capturing" a husband, but also seems to consider her presence alongside him as natural. They obviously understand each other quite well and collaborate with ease on the works. We don't always see him clearly tutoring her, though there seem to be moments where he "demonstrates" to her, through some peculiar experiences. This seems to be a highly imaginative and visionary family, as they move around Edo and at times they experience some supernatural phenomena (either visions or weather changes) that influence their art.

O-Ei does have a life of her own, and a mind and creative vision of her own, even if she seems reluctant to branch out and if she also sees the flaws in her father's character. Though rather sarcastic like Hokusai, where she appears especially touching and likable, is in the care she gives to her little sister O-Nao, who is blind, and with whom her father has very little to do. She takes the little girl on walks with her across Edo, on boat rides, on walks through the snowy countryside and cultivates her animation and her other senses to perceive things and enjoy life as much as a normal child could. Along with the views O-Ei is gathering of the everyday life in the city and in the country, she is obviously trying to nurture her sister's senses so that she too can express herself. One day she will paint a charming picture of O-Nao.

I mention the story can be confusing, in part because of the periodic "supernatural" visions of the artists, though they all have a certain amount of poetry that contrasts with some of the crude and down-to earth behavior (which features a lot of drinking and visits to brothels, including by O-Ei who seemingly does as much erotic painting as her father does, and at one point goes to experience sex with a male prostitute). The confusion stems also from the series of scenes that are at times unconnected but are meant to portray the rich diversity of experiences through which the artists, father and daughter, move about in their world. There isn't a precise timeline of events too. Things happen, are suggested, but will later find their way into creation.

I think the anime will essentially appeal to artistic minded people and amateurs of "arthouse" works. You have to be sensitive to the poetry of situations and slow moving plot to like this, but I found it had great sensitivity, and the discovery of this mysteriously little known "daughter of" was really worthwhile.