Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on August 2012

Here is yet another wholesome and forthright human drama about family and dementia. It even works in another obsession in Japanese film, exotic foreign dance—in this case tango.

To be fair the cast is led by two highly talented and long-time Japanese pros, Kumiko Akiyoshi and Isao Hashizume, though the unoriginal fare doesn’t do their talents justice. Director Hideko Wada won an award for his first film Juken no Cinderella in 2007 at the Monaco International Film Fest, but this effort won’t pick up prizes.

Yuriko (Akiyoshi) has finished raising kids and is excited about pursuing her lifelong dream of academia. But the fact her father (Hashizume) is falling into dementia makes her change plans and spend time with him. The tango comes to the fore as an activity both can enjoy, can it fight dementia too?

Derivative and pedestrian, this work is pretty missable. (104 min)