Norwegian Wood (film)


Norwegian Wood is a 2010 Japanese romantic drama film directed by Tran Anh Hung, based on Haruki Murakami's novel of the same name. The film was released in Japan on 11 December 2010.

Plot

Toru Watanabe is a quiet and serious young man in 1960s Tokyo whose personal life is in tumult, having lost his best friend Kizuki after he inexplicably commits suicide. Seeking an escape, Toru enters a university in Tokyo. By chance, during a walk in a park, Toru meets Kizuki's ex-girlfriend Naoko, and they grow close. Naoko continues to be devastated by the loss of Kizuki and spirals into a deep depression.
Toru sleeps with Naoko on her 20th birthday. Shortly afterwards, Naoko withdraws from the world and leaves for a sanitarium in a remote forest setting near Kyoto. Toru is anguished by the situation, as he still has deep feelings for Naoko, but she is unable to reciprocate. He also lives with the influence of death everywhere, while Naoko feels as if some integral part of her has been permanently lost. He continues with his studies, and during the spring semester meets an attractive girl and fellow student Midori, who is everything that Naoko isn't — outgoing, vivacious, and supremely self-confident. The story then follows Toru as he is torn between the two women in his life, and choosing between his past and his future.

Cast

This film debuted in the 67th Venice International Film Festival where it competed for the Golden Lion. It was then subsequently released in Japanese cinemas on 11 December 2010.
In the United Kingdom, it was released on 11 March 2011. In the United States, the film had a limited release on 6 January 2012 in New York City and Washington D.C. In Canada, the film was released on 2 March 2012.

Reception

Critical reception

The Daily Telegraph said that director Tran Anh Hung was "brave" to attempt to bring Haruki Murakami's 1987 novel to the big screen but mentioned that "the film comes across as a mere summary of Murakami's book". Stephen Holden of The New York Times wrote that the film "registers less as a coherent narrative than as a tortuous reverie steeped in mournful yearning".

Accolades

Soundtrack

The score for the film's soundtracks was composed by Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood. An original soundtrack album for the film was released on 10 November 2010, containing pieces from Greenwood's score, along with three songs used in the film by German Krautrock band Can, all originally released between 1969 and 1971.
Track list:
No.TranslationJapanese titleRomanization
1."Bit About Yourself, You Want to Properly"もう少し自分のこと、きちんとしたいのMō sukoshi jibun no koto, kichinto shitai no
2."Meadows, Wind, Groves"草原、風、雑木林Sōgen, Kaze, Zōkibayashi
3."Mary, Mary, So Contrary"
"Mary, Mary, So Contrary"
4."Since I'll Come to See You Again"また会いに来るからねMata ai ni kurukara ne
5."Don't Read Things That Have Not Had the Baptism of Time"時の洗礼を受けていないものを読むなToki no senrei o ukete inai mono o yomu na
6."Reiko"レイコ"Reiko"
7."Bring Me Coffee or Tea"
"Bring Me Coffee or Tea"
8."Naoko Has Died"直子が死んだNaoko ga shinda
9."Shut Up Like a Good Boy"いい子だから黙っててIi ko dakara damattete
10."I Walked About Aimlessly"あてもなく歩き回ったAtemonaku arukimawatta
11."Quarter Tone Bloom"クォーター・トーン・ブルームKwōtā tōn burūmu
12."Don't Turn the Light On, Leave Me Alone"
"Don't Turn the Light On, Leave Me Alone"
13."When You Take Me, Take Only Me"私をとるときは私だけをとってねWatashi o toru toki wa watashi dake o totte ne
14."Severe Auditory Hallucinations"激しい幻聴Hageshii genchō