(watched thu/20220818 via The Criterion Channel – directed by by Koji Fukada and starring Mariko Tsustui, Michako Ichikawa, and Sōsuke Ikematsu; released 26 July 2019)

Still processing / facing my inability to properly disseminate (hence the goal of writing these for most inputs I allow to sublet my brainspace for an hour or a week or two or more) the totality of the layers upon layers weaving in and out of Fukada's film about a kind woman (star Mariko Tsustui is mesmerizing) broken by the cruelty of a media frenzy and a confidence betrayed amidst a patriarchal society of appearances, convention, and standing. Hooked me from the first frame and didn't let go until the final, haunting, Stanwyck-in-DOUBLE-INDEMNITY-infused sequence. Highly recommended – even if I'm flubbing the words to express exactly why.