By / MOOK Scenic Spots Family Editorial Team Compilation & Report
Having previously won the Best Director award at the Japan Newspaper Publishers & Editors Association Film Awards for *The Natural House*, setting the record for the youngest director to receive the prize, Yamashita Nobuhiro is one of Japan’s most talked-about emerging directors today. The film *Love Comes Suddenly* is based on the original novel by Satou Taiji and serves as the final chapter of the Hakodate Trilogy, following *Scenes from a Coal Mining Town* and *The Sun Shines Only Here*. Featuring Aoi Yu and Oguri Shun—renowned across Asia for their roles as forest-girl personas and character actors—this film also marks the last project of their 20s and 30s respectively.
Stills from *Love Comes Suddenly*. (Image provided by Skyhigh Creative)
Stills from *Love Comes Suddenly*. (Image provided by Skyhigh Creative)
The film depicts Mikiwa (played by Oguri Shun), a man in his thirties who has lost hope in life. After divorcing his wife, he returns to his hometown of Hakodate, surviving on unemployment benefits. Aimlessly studying carpentry at a vocational training center or playing softball with a group of unmotivated friends, he meets Daishima (played by Matsuda Shota), a man with dreams of running a hotel.
Stills from *Love Comes Suddenly*. (Image provided by Skyhigh Creative)
However, a young and wildly uninhibited hotel hostess named Satomi (played by Aoi Yu) suddenly bursts into his otherwise dull life. With her unapologetically genuine personality—mimicking bird calls and dancing like an ostrich during courtship—she deeply captivates Mikiwa. Can these two imperfect individuals find the happiness they thought was lost in each other?
Poster for *Love Comes Suddenly*. (Image provided by Skyhigh Creative)
[Info]
Love Comes Suddenly
Director: Yamashita Nobuhiro
Cast: Oguri Shun, Aoi Yu, Matsuda Shota
Country: Japan
Rating: PG-12
Genre: Romance, Art-house
Release Date: December 16, 2016
Production Company: Skyhigh Creative