Still the Water (Kawase, 2014)

Last updated on: October 12, 2014 at 9:01 am by Evan Cogswell

Still the Water (Kawase, 2014) 2014-10-12T09:01:29-05:00 Evan Cogswell

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The opening scenes of Still the Water fluctuate between stillness and turbulence, between celebrations of life and bitter reminders of mortality. Initially the camera looks out over the calm sea, and then the waves slowly begin to crash into the shore, quickly growing in amplitude and volume until the sea has turned white. The film then suddenly cuts to black and silence. The next image forms a striking contrast as an elderly man ties a goat upside down, slits the back of its neck, and drains its blood. The film subsequently cuts to a ritualistic dance among the inhabitants of a small Japanese town. During the celebration, Kaito (Nijiro Murakami) wanders to the shore only to discover a naked corpse floating in the sea.

Beginning with the opening shot of the sea, Still the Water captures the sea’s dual nature: majestic and dangerous, capable of supporting an underwater colony of coral, sponges, crustaceans, and fish, and also capable of creating life threatening typhoons and drowning swimmers. That dichotomy of peace and beauty versus danger and chaos continues throughout the film, and that paradox is the very thing that attracts some people to sea while frightening others.

High school students Kaito and his maybe girlfriend Kyoko (Jun Yoshinaga) embody both ends of the spectrum regarding the sea. He finds it scary, because it is alive and has the power to kill. She finds surfing and swimming exhilarating, because it is an opportunity to become one with the sea and observe its beauty first hand, kind of like sex. Yes, she makes that comparison to a boy she has a blatant crush on, making it clear where she wants their relationship to go; however, he resents sex due to his mother’s many lovers since his father left, one of whom directly relates to his fear of the sea. As Kaito incredulously witnesses, Kyoko also has no qualms about diving into the depths in her knee socks, skirt, and blouse right after school, even though there is a swimming ban due to the corpse being discovered.

At its most fundamental level, Still the Water is a coming of age story as Kaito confronts his fear of the unknown, the storms in life outside of his control, for which his fear of the sea naturally serves as a metaphor. Unfortunately, the film takes that metaphor too seriously, and in trying to be profound, some of its advice almost becomes pretentious. “Whatever you want to do, do it,” is not the most insightful way of saying do not be afraid of adventure or of failing. The climactic speech from Kyoko’s father draws a lengthy parallel between surfing and confronting one’s fears. Finding peace by letting the power of the wave carry you to shore, or acknowledging that much of life is outside your control is a worthwhile point, but the idea of “becoming one with the wave” is repeated too often.

In a film filled with contrasts, finding quiet by traveling into the eye of the storm is a central paradox. When life at home with his mother becomes too tense, Kaito flies away to Tokyo to see his father, but his carefree life does not solve anything for Kaito. Conversely, Kyoko spends time with her terminally ill mother and comes to accept her impending death. The scene where she and her parents silently embrace one another on their porch and watch the breeze blow through the trees is touching and beautiful. Equally beautiful are the underwater shots of the ocean as Kyoko swims along the coral reef right off the shore.

Serenity and sorrow are both parts of life, and Still the Water admits that their presence does not always make sense. It also uses that belief to rationalize some dramatic choices which would otherwise stretch credibility as well as some lines which sound goofy even reading them as subtitles. However, the spiritualistic worldview is integral to the island community, which makes most of the drama and dialogue believable within the world of the film, even if the film tries to use that to get away with some contrived storytelling.

Regardless of how convincingly Still the Water depicts the spiritualism of the town, it is undeniably a beautifully shot, deliberately paced, quiet film about coming of age and finding serenity amidst the storms and contradictions of life. Even the camera use reflects the contrasts, alternating between handheld for close-up discussions and steadicam for long distance shots of nature. As the parallel between Kaito’s fear of the unknown and his fear of the sea gradually emerges throughout the film, one recurring idea is that no one can fully understand why tragedy and joy occur in life. An elderly fisherman observes “those kids don’t understand yet what lies in the sea.” Still the Water very obviously asks: does anyone?

—

Evan Cogswell blogs about film at Catholic Cinephile.

Film Festivals

Reviews

Toronto International Film Festival 2014

Naomi Kawase

Still the Water

Previous Post

October 11, 2014

Rose McGowan's Dawn and the Problem of Short Films

Next Post

October 14, 2014 Gotham Episode 1.4 Recap: Arkham

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 10 Years Later 1999 Top 5 2007 Top 10 2008 Favorite Discoveries 2008 Top 10 2009 Favorite Discoveries 2009 Top 10 2010 Favorite Discoveries 2010 Top 10 2011 Top 10 2012 Top Ten 2013 Top Ten 2014 Top Ten Best Picture Winners Christian Spotlight on Entertainment Christianity Today Coming Soon Disclosure Disclosure--AS Disclosure--Book Disclosure--DVDS Disclosure--SEOL Disclosure--Travel Dissenting Opinion Elsewhere Emergenetics Essays Featured Film Fest DC--2014 Film Festivals Full Frame Documentary Film Festival 2010 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival 2011 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival 2012 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival 2013 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival 2014 Headline Interviews Laura on the Oscar Winners Podcasts Quick Impressions Reviews RiverRun Film Festival 2014 Television The Criterion Collection The Thin Place To Stream or Not to Stream? Top 10s and Other Lists Toronto International Film Festival 2009 Toronto International Film Festival 2010 Toronto International Film Festival 2011 Toronto International Film Festival 2012 Toronto International Film Festival 2013 Toronto International Film Festival 2014 Uncategorized Video Virginia Film Festival 2011 Virginia Film Festival 2013 Women's Film Festival 2012

Select a Month February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What did David use to calm Saul when Saul was troubled by a harmful spirit?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Flute Drum Harp Trumpet