VERY FEW films illustrate parental love as vividly as Be With You - the most heart-warming Japanese romance since Love Letter.
The film stars teen idol Shidou Nakamura (Ping Pong) as Takumi, a widower who is struggling to take care of his six-year-old son Yuji (Akashi Takei) after the death of his young wife Mio (Yuko Takeuchi).
Takumi keeps thinking about Mio, who promised to return in the rainy season. His dream comes true when a young woman who looks just like Mio but has no memory appears in the woods.
Family life gradually returns to normal and the three have a great time together until the rainy season comes to an end, and Mio is about to leave again.
Directed by Nobuhiro Doi (Beautiful Life), the film is a simple tale with a powerful message. It gets too sentimental at times, but Doi's refined touch and storytelling ensure that things don't get too heavy. The scenes where Mio prepares to leave for the second time have the same heartbreaking effect as the climax in Titanic, though in a much more subtle way.
The cinematography is impressive. Through the use of colourful props such as a red umbrella, yellow daffodils and the green forest, Doi gives the images a poetic, dream-like touch.
