3/5 stars A name as synonymous with Japanese cinema as Yasujiro Ozu or Akira Kurosawa, director Yoji Yamada turned 90 this month, an occasion marked by the release of his 92nd feature film, in this the centenary year of Shochiku film studios. It’s a Flickering Life includes everything one has come to expect from a Yamada film; it’s a lighthearted portrait of tempestuous family relationships intertwined with a profoundly nostalgic look back at the golden age of cinema. Long-time fans of the director’s oeuvre will find plenty here to enjoy. As Japan plays host to the 2019 Rugby World Cup , office worker Ayumi (Shinobu Terajima) is outraged to discover that her father, Goh (Kenji Sawada), has accumulated a massive gambling debt that loan sharks are now holding her responsible for. Equally frustrated that her mother, Yoshiko (Nobuko Miyamoto) is doing nothing to quash her father’s bad habits, Ayumi seizes control of his finances until his debt has been repaid. In defiance, Goh hobbles off to the local cinema, run by his best friend Terashin (Nenji Kobayashi), who screens for him a classic ’50s melodrama on which they both worked as young men. Transported back to his youth, Goh (now played by Masaki Suda) fondly recalls his days working for a celebrated studio director (played by Lily Franky, doing a fine impersonation of an Ozu-like auteur) and the crush he had on the film’s radiant leading lady Sonoko (Keiko Kitagawa). Problems arise when young Terashin (Yojiro Noda) introduces his friend to the girl who delivers their lunch to set each day (Mei Nagano), only for both men to find themselves competing for her affections. In its later sequences, the film tackles the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Tokyo, but it is a shadow that lingers long and mournfully over the entire production. Veteran actor and comedian Ken Shimura was originally cast in the lead role, before tragically succumbing to the virus himself. Hasty replacement Sawada is a perfectly capable performer, but audiences are left to speculate how the film might have been elevated by the undeniable charm and charismatic persona of Shimura, to whom the film is dedicated. It’s a Flickering Life finds Yamada in competent form, even if the results are somewhat repetitive and ultimately underwhelming. Much like the director’s contemporaries in the West, Clint Eastwood and Woody Allen, the fact that they are still able to make films so late in life isn’t always ample justification for them to continue doing so. Want more articles like this? Follow SCMP Film on Facebook