Kôji Yakusho teaches the art of appreciating the everyday in this meditative drama from Wim Wenders.

A janitor named Hirayama (Yakusho) drives between jobs listening to rock music as he goes. From job to job, Hirayama diligently focuses on the tasks at hand, cleaning toilets all over Tokyo. He seems at peace and spends his breaks reading or taking photographs. As family members begin to make an appearance, we slowly learn that there may be more to Hirayama than meets the eye.

This serene character study centres on a beautiful performance from Yakusho, who was the recipient of the Best Actor award at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Yakusho’s understated performance sets the tone for a film which is disarmingly pleasant. With incredibly delicate direction from Wenders (Paris, Texas, Wings of Desire) this one is not to be missed on the big screen.