“You Are the Film”: The Best New Film You May Never See
Recommendations
Please, take a seat…
I’m very glad to be back volunteering with Fantasia this year. 2026 marks their thirtieth year of esoteric film-screening, and I realized that I have as deep a connection with the festival as I do with the city it takes place in. Toronto may have their International Film Festival, as do New York, London and Venice, but I don’t think that there is any other city that has a festival like the one that takes place from July to August in Montreal. I started attending in the 2010s, never imagining that the event would become the monster it seems determined to become. I have seen the lines grow, more merch offered, and even my own role as a volunteer treated with more respect and recognition. And I still love the movies on offer.
Ah, yes…another reason why you should take the time to offer your services at an event that needs as many free hands it can get: free movies! I have already sat through two that were inspiring (“Godhead”) and action-packed (“Blades of the Guardians”), but it was the third one on my list that I want to share with you, hoping against hope that there are some of you willing to watch a movie not made in North America, and very unlikely to appear in a Cineplex.
On Sunday, July 19th, I sat in Theatre Hall on the Concordia University campus (the main site of the festival) and watched Makoto Ueda’s “You Are the Film”. I was not sure what this film would actually be like, and its runtime of 68 minutes did feel like a cheat (there is a separate section at the festival for short films and I wondered if it had been mislabeled by the staff). But it did not take me long to realize that this is one of those films that is its own special animal; it was truly the best film so far and I am very doubtful that I will see anything as clever as this one during the event (no matter how many free tickets I receive).
In Shinokitazawa, a district of Tokyo (it’s amazing how many memories came back to me as I watched this film), a young woman, Madoka (Marika Ito), running a small theatre troupe, and acting as its resident scriptwriter, is trying to finish up a project for her fellow actors, and she one day decides to take a break and watch a film at a small theatre near the café where the plays are performed. At the exact same time in the exact same neighbourhood, a musician, Kazuma (Kai Inowaki), is struggling with his group to make it in the business when he decides to quit a local bar and head to the same theatre…
Now, at this point, it may sound like a typical boy-meets-girl movie where the protagonists have to face many obstacles before discovering true love. Well, that is only half-right. You see…they are in the same theatre, but they remain alone. The ones on their respective screens…are the other person. They quickly realize that a “dull movie” (Kazuma’s complaint) is actually a way for them to learn more about each other and what may actually be certain problems that can be handled. Flyers, a laborer with a unique skill set, science fiction battles, gangsters and police detectives all play a role in a very small part of Tokyo that seems to provide no drama at all in their lives. As I said, they can see into the lives of the other person, but they only meet once and…
It is so tempting to spoil this one, although I am not even sure I could by telling you the ending. I see echoes of “The Purple Rose of Cairo”, “Sherlock Jr.”, “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”, and a host of other films that have played with the narrative and the use of film as a storytelling device. I am glad that Ueda kept the budget low as the characters move from izekayas, café, a vintage clothing store, a small theatre run by a clearly overworked man, and a small suburb of Tokyo. This should inspire anyone who claims that there are no new ideas under the sun. This is a brilliant film that plays easily with the form without sacrificing story, pacing, character development or the interest of the audience.
Hunt it down, tell your friends, hope that it does not get remade with a typical Hollywood ending…
…and watch.
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