Underplayed Gems

The Taste of Tea (2004)

The Taste of Tea poster
Original title
茶の味
Directed by
Katsuhito Ishii
Genre
drama film, comedy film
Country
Japan
Runtime
2h 04m
Rated
12
Rating
7.5 of 10 from 171 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

A family in rural Japan goes about their everyday lives, each member dealing with their own small oddities and dreams. Strange and funny things happen to them, but the mood stays calm and accepting.

quirkywhimsicalleisurelytenderdreamlikecomedicgentlewarm

What happens

The Taste of Tea (Japanese: 茶の味, Hepburn: Cha no Aji) is a 2004 Japanese comedy drama fantasy film written and directed by Katsuhito Ishii. Described as a "surreal" version of Ingmar Bergman's Fanny and Alexander (1982), it follows the daily lives of a family living in rural Tochigi prefecture, north of Tokyo. Main influences for the director were the magical realism of Nobuhiko Obayashi, the unexpected humor of Takeshi Kitano, the eccentric surrealism of Seijun Suzuki and the daily life medium-class stories of Yasujiro Ozu. It was a selection of the Cannes Film Festival. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems. Not quite it? You can browse by genre, country and year, or take this one into the 3D catalogue and ask the Catbot for something closer.