Perfect Days (2023): The Simple Joys of Hirayama’s Life
Repetition becomes revelation in this quiet portrait of a man who’s figured some things out.
I don't often watch a film and feel a little envious of the protagonist for having achieved what I'm trying to accomplish in life. The key is to be happy by doing simple things and avoiding talking to people as much as possible. I must say that Hirayama, played by Koji Yakusho, seems better than me at dealing with people invading his personal space.
Wim Wenders's Perfect Days (2023) doesn't have a story, per se. It's a slice-of-life type of movie as we follow Hirayama waking up, going to work (cleaning public toilets in Tokyo), coming back home, listening to his cassette tapes in the car, visiting a bathhouse, eating at the same place, taking care of his plants, and reading books. On his days off, he goes to the laundrette, gets his photos developed, buys a new book, visits a different restaurant, goes home to read, and dreams. He is a happy man.
At one point, his niece visits him for a couple of days. On another occasion, he has to help his young colleague with personal matters or work a double shift. The routine is occasionally altered, but everything eventually returns to normal.
Perfect Days does not build up to a climactic scene that could alter Hirayama's life. What changes throughout the movie is the way Wim Wenders presents familiar scenes. Initially, he provides detailed insights into the work, routine, and world of his protagonist, but as the days go by, he only shows selected elements to maintain consistency while avoiding monotony.
The repetition is the point. But it's not easy to do it without making it tiresome to watch. Yet, Wenders constructed his movie in a way that the repetition feels necessary. It's what makes Hirayama a captivating and empathic figure, his appreciation of what everyone seems not to appreciate in the life he chose to live.
He may not be happy with everything, but we are led to understand that he has moved away from what was an unhappy life to find contentment in the one he has now. Sadness is only temporary. Days pass.
There's a hidden complexity behind that, but Perfect Days doesn't address it. Instead, it relies on a few well-chosen soundtrack choices and Koji Yakusho's impeccable performance to convey what we need to know. While the film does feel somewhat superficial at times, it is still well-made and offers an immersive experience in a small, uplifting, and unexpectedly comforting world.
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