Drama

Her Love Boils Bathwater

湯を沸かすほどの熱い愛

Directed by: Ryota Nakano
2016 / 125 minutes / Under 15s must be accompanied by an adult

A TALE OF A MOTHER’S FIERCE LOVE AND A FAMILY’S ENDURING SPIRIT.

Screened as part of JFF 2017

Single mother Futaba (Rie Miyazawa, Pale Moon) grapples with the challenge of raising an adolescent daughter who’s severely bullied at school. Despite their ups and downs, life at home is generally peaceful. However their situation takes a complicated turn when Futaba collapses at work and is diagnosed with terminal cancer.

With only a few months to live, Futaba attempts to tie up loose ends to ensure her daughter Azumi is provided for. Futaba starts off by tracking down her ex-husband, Kazuhiro, who abandoned them some years ago. Next on her bucket list, Futaba then announces that they will resurrect the family’s disused public bathhouse.

Each family member struggles to adjust to the new situation, but the unit is held together by Futaba’s firm, sometimes harsh, love. Fiercely candid and impulsive, she may hug you or hit you with a spoon. Along their journey, new family members emerge, together with perfect strangers, who join in the shifting game of musical chairs, while Futaba’s health rapidly declines.