Not bittersweet, but a tad sweeter, and lovely. Being a story about an extended Japanese family at an annual gathering to the home of the now grandparents. Emotionally modulated--the anger of a father's disappointment in his son's not living up to to his expectations, and the son's detachment from an overbearing and imperious father, overshadowed by the death of the father's revered other son, and the constant undertone of bickering between mater and pater--are not expressed in outbursts and loud confrontations. The burns are slow, the barbs are terse, as they go about the business of preparing meals and while sitting at the family tatami table and during the steep walks from the hilltop house to the beach, or in individual reflection while taking the traditional bath. The sweetness is in the relationship between the son and his wife and the growing connection with his pre-teen stepson, and with his sister and other extended family members; and in the ties that endure, to come together as a family.
Review of Still Walking
