Survival family (2017)

	Also Known As: La famiglia dei sopravvissuti
	Year of first release: 2017
	Director: Yaguchi Shinobu
	Actors: Fumiyo Kohinata, Wakana Aoi, Eri Fukatsu, Yuki Izumisawa, Akira Emoto
	Country: J
	Genre: Drama, Comedy
	Conditions of visioning: 21.04.2017, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2017
Synopsis: A power black out in Tokyo brings the whole city in standstill. But all electrical devices stopped working as well. Suzuki family first do not know how to react and follow what everyone does, buying everything in the supermarkets, then going on the road looking for the grandma. The father Yoshiyuki (Kohinata), the mother Yui (Aoi), the girl Mitsue (Fukatsu) and the boy Kenji (Izumisawa) will have to stick together.
Review: The family is a caricature of a Japanese family with strong traditional roles. The father works all day and the mother prepares the bento in the morning and cooks for the family all day. The children are teenies but not very clever. During the trip, they meet other groups and learn from them. And there are twists and turns. The idea of the movie came from 2003, so the director. It may have encountered difficulties for funding until 2011. From 2011 and the accident in Fukushima, there have been series of black out in Japan. And the government immediately stopped all nuclear plants in Japan and started putting back the nuclear plants to reduce their coal dependency. The movie gives a picture of a population which is dependant and can barely adapt and also a part of the population who can adapt to many situations supported by nature or by culture (old man in the farm, cycling family).  The family might have been built rather dumb in order to give some moments of comedy in this tragic situation. And this works. The running gag with the wig of the father, the hilarious scene of catching pigs. Yaguchi manages to build a story with a social dramatic background and moments of comedy in a pleasant rhythm.
Rating: 6 /10