First off, I really enjoy the format of the two of you interviewing each other. Second, I have been meaning to see this film since I first heard about it. I’m already a Wim Wenders fan so not sure what’s taking me so long.
I can definitely understand that sensation of wanting to translocate and be in another life/place just temporarily. Like you say, the comparison is never really a fair one but it points to a shift that wants to occur regardless.
Thanks, Davin - glad to hear the format works, we've been living with this film for the last 6 weeks so it's been great to finally air our thoughts! I hope you'll circle back to us after you've seen it with your thoughts and observations...! What other Wim Wenders films do you recommend?
It's so long since I saw Paris, Texas but that was indeed a classic. BVSC didn't grab me at the time, but it might more now. The others I think I saw but only in parts or when I was really young. It's definitely time to catch up on Wenders. I'm confident you'll love Perfect Days Davin, let us know!
Thanks so much Susanne. I wish we had come across the movie earlier as it really has enriched our lives. We're desperate to go to Japan now of course... Have you ever been?
Yes, I have been to Japan and would love to go back, but we decided not to travel without our dog anymore because he is old and very attached to me. So, we will wait…
The photograph is wonderful, a complete and restful image created from the hints of I’m not sure what that is quite absorbing. Enjoyed the film and your conversation about it - Wim Wenders is always thought provoking. Spring season can be inspiring and unsettling - new energy and the urge to do something fresh or seek out somewhere new for a while, just as is happening in nature around us. A great result for you - now go and clean the bathroom again.
I've very much enjoyed this new format of the two of you interviewing one another. While it seems simple it's not easy to pull off, so bravo.
I am a Wim Wenders fan - have you seen "The American Friend" by any chance? Though I have to admit that "Perfect Days" did not work for me and I am saying that as someone who loves Japan, visited it (once) and as a long practitioner of Aikido the Japanese culture is close to my heart.
To me the premise of a guy who is happy cleaning toilets felt like an emotional trap which I want to avoid falling into: Look at this guy, he is cleaning public toilets and he is just so happy! We should all be so lucky! I appreciate looking at the little things in life and enjoying a ray of sunshine on a park bench without the toilet aspect... The other side of this story is that it's quite possible that I feel this way because I cleaned many semi-public toilets in my time serving in the army - an unpleasant experience as one can imagine - so the allure of this film has not rubbed on me.
Alon, thanks for sharing!! And I am glad you enjoyed this interview format. Now that I think about it, I think it works easily for us because we wrote to each other for a year before we met in person, so we are quite familiar with the back and forth of a conversation that is longer form. I'm sure we'll do it again.
I love that you weighed in here having actually cleaned toilets in the army - a totally different vibe than fancy Tokyo toilets but the work is the same. To my eye I think he is cleaning toilets as a way to escape/avoid/reject whatever his father inflicted on him. His sister brings him his favorite chocolate and it is clearly high end stuff - I think he comes from a rich, intellectual background, similar to Mama San's ex-husband that we meet at the end of the film. But he's chosen this different path deliberately... is he happy? I'm not sure. Content at times, yes. But not always.
We haven't seen The American Friend, should we add it to the list?
Thanks for chiming in Alon, and I appreciate the alternative perspective – yours being particularly unique as a former cleaner of toilets! Ultimately I like that the movie is full of ambiguity in that while at times it may appear as though he is very content with his life, there is plenty of evidence that there are some underlying emotional issues he is carrying. I didn't see 'The American Friend' but will look out for it. Thanks for the tip.
I watched Perfect Days today and loved it. I think mostly because beneath the surface it doesn’t say that he is happy cleaning toilets. It feels like it’s about trauma, grief, and loss and finding a way through those by losing yourself in the mundane but then finding yourself and some forms of joy in the mundane and in the uneven actions of other people.
It was also visually beautiful in its palette and its dedication to the ephemeral wonders of light and shadow.
So well said. That scene with the sister really was this aha moment that this was much more than meets the eye, there's an undercurrent of backstory that we never fully see, but it is loaded.
One of my favorite things I noticed on the third viewing was that day one with Niko she was on her phone, day two with Niko you never see her phone. It's such a beautiful contrast, and the connection between them blooms as a result. And I loved that he took two photographs of her, one furtively at a distance, one up close with her permission.
First off, I really enjoy the format of the two of you interviewing each other. Second, I have been meaning to see this film since I first heard about it. I’m already a Wim Wenders fan so not sure what’s taking me so long.
I can definitely understand that sensation of wanting to translocate and be in another life/place just temporarily. Like you say, the comparison is never really a fair one but it points to a shift that wants to occur regardless.
Thanks, Davin - glad to hear the format works, we've been living with this film for the last 6 weeks so it's been great to finally air our thoughts! I hope you'll circle back to us after you've seen it with your thoughts and observations...! What other Wim Wenders films do you recommend?
“Wings of Desire”, “Paris, Texas”, “Until the End of the World” and also his documentaries “Tokyo-Ga” and “Buena Vista Social Club”
It's so long since I saw Paris, Texas but that was indeed a classic. BVSC didn't grab me at the time, but it might more now. The others I think I saw but only in parts or when I was really young. It's definitely time to catch up on Wenders. I'm confident you'll love Perfect Days Davin, let us know!
Well, now I know what to watch this weekend. Thank you!
You're welcome Claire, we hope you love it as much as we did!
Ahhh enjoy it! I'd love to watch it again for the first time.
I love that movie. You made me want to watch it again. I also loved your conversation about it and the personal reflections on it. Wonderful!
And I think it is the perfect art drop this month. Beautiful photograph, Tom!
Thanks so much Susanne. I wish we had come across the movie earlier as it really has enriched our lives. We're desperate to go to Japan now of course... Have you ever been?
Yes, I have been to Japan and would love to go back, but we decided not to travel without our dog anymore because he is old and very attached to me. So, we will wait…
The photograph is wonderful, a complete and restful image created from the hints of I’m not sure what that is quite absorbing. Enjoyed the film and your conversation about it - Wim Wenders is always thought provoking. Spring season can be inspiring and unsettling - new energy and the urge to do something fresh or seek out somewhere new for a while, just as is happening in nature around us. A great result for you - now go and clean the bathroom again.
Ha ha, yes. Glad you liked the film and this post!
I've very much enjoyed this new format of the two of you interviewing one another. While it seems simple it's not easy to pull off, so bravo.
I am a Wim Wenders fan - have you seen "The American Friend" by any chance? Though I have to admit that "Perfect Days" did not work for me and I am saying that as someone who loves Japan, visited it (once) and as a long practitioner of Aikido the Japanese culture is close to my heart.
To me the premise of a guy who is happy cleaning toilets felt like an emotional trap which I want to avoid falling into: Look at this guy, he is cleaning public toilets and he is just so happy! We should all be so lucky! I appreciate looking at the little things in life and enjoying a ray of sunshine on a park bench without the toilet aspect... The other side of this story is that it's quite possible that I feel this way because I cleaned many semi-public toilets in my time serving in the army - an unpleasant experience as one can imagine - so the allure of this film has not rubbed on me.
Alon, thanks for sharing!! And I am glad you enjoyed this interview format. Now that I think about it, I think it works easily for us because we wrote to each other for a year before we met in person, so we are quite familiar with the back and forth of a conversation that is longer form. I'm sure we'll do it again.
I love that you weighed in here having actually cleaned toilets in the army - a totally different vibe than fancy Tokyo toilets but the work is the same. To my eye I think he is cleaning toilets as a way to escape/avoid/reject whatever his father inflicted on him. His sister brings him his favorite chocolate and it is clearly high end stuff - I think he comes from a rich, intellectual background, similar to Mama San's ex-husband that we meet at the end of the film. But he's chosen this different path deliberately... is he happy? I'm not sure. Content at times, yes. But not always.
We haven't seen The American Friend, should we add it to the list?
Thanks for chiming in Alon, and I appreciate the alternative perspective – yours being particularly unique as a former cleaner of toilets! Ultimately I like that the movie is full of ambiguity in that while at times it may appear as though he is very content with his life, there is plenty of evidence that there are some underlying emotional issues he is carrying. I didn't see 'The American Friend' but will look out for it. Thanks for the tip.
I watched Perfect Days today and loved it. I think mostly because beneath the surface it doesn’t say that he is happy cleaning toilets. It feels like it’s about trauma, grief, and loss and finding a way through those by losing yourself in the mundane but then finding yourself and some forms of joy in the mundane and in the uneven actions of other people.
It was also visually beautiful in its palette and its dedication to the ephemeral wonders of light and shadow.
So well said. That scene with the sister really was this aha moment that this was much more than meets the eye, there's an undercurrent of backstory that we never fully see, but it is loaded.
One of my favorite things I noticed on the third viewing was that day one with Niko she was on her phone, day two with Niko you never see her phone. It's such a beautiful contrast, and the connection between them blooms as a result. And I loved that he took two photographs of her, one furtively at a distance, one up close with her permission.