Japan Celebrates Ryusuke Hamaguchi Four Drive My car Oscar Nominations

The three-hour drama “Drive My Car,” directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi, is about a man coming to terms with his wife’s death.

The nominations for an Academy Award have delighted audiences in the director’s home country of Japan.

All of Japan’s main news outlets covered the announcement of the four Academy Award nominations, from the respected Nikkei business daily to the tabloid sports newspapers that typically devote no space to local art films.

To be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture is an incredible honor. According to Twitter user YasioE, “the fusion of Haruki Murakami and Chekhov has generated a universality that can be felt around the world.”

What Did This Oscar Winning Movie Follows

Two years after the sudden loss of his wife, renowned stage actor and director Yusuke Kafuku (Nishijima) receives an opportunity to conduct a performance of “Uncle Vanya” at a theatre festival in Hiroshima.

Misaki Watari (Miura), a reticent young woman, is the festival-assigned driver for his trusty red Saab 900.

Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay nominations are also in the running for Hamaguchi’s film.

But it has already surpassed Akira Kurosawa’s “Ran” as the most nominated Japanese film of all time.

The introspective drama was Japan’s official Oscar submission; it had already won Golden Globe and BAFTA awards prior to its victory at the 94th Academy Awards.

The 2021 Cannes Film Festival was the premier of “Drive My Car,” which also took home the award for best script. You may watch it on MUBI India right now.

Conclusion

It’s no easy effort to adapt the works of the most widely read Japanese author of his generation. Drive My Car, however, demonstrates that Ryusuke Hamaguchi was up to the task.

The three-hour drama based on a short tale by Haruki Murakami has received four Academy Award nominations, including best picture and best director nods for Hamaguchi.

Making it one of the biggest surprises of this year’s Oscar season. The Japanese director, who has been a fixture in the international arthouse scene for years, has finally found mainstream success with this film.