I managed to catch aruitemo aruitemo in Singapore but on the small screen. I read that the Japan Creative Centre has a library, which has multimedia stations allowing access to films and such.
As I write this the collection is actually pretty small but having aruitemo aruitemo among the films was good enough. As there was only one headset per terminal my girlfriend and I saw the film individually on seperate computers.
The film was played back on Windows Media Player and I think was probably a DVD version. Not surprisingly there is no dubbed audio but you do get English subtitles – you may have to right-click to get to the menu to switch it on. For us we were more interested to follow the Japanese dialogue with the aid of Japanese subtitles – which were available too.
Let’s skip the plot – and if you haven’t read it elsewhere before, I think it will be more interesting to just watch the film as it unravels.
The pacing wasn’t too bad for me though – I was more bothered by the headset initially actually, until I repositioned my specs. And of course, you would be watching on a 24″ (I think) screen, and the light coming from the windows might bother some. There were also people walking in and out of the library, so sometimes I was distracted.
My favourite moments were probably the cooking scenes actually, haha. I also liked how the micing captured the background chatter alongside with the main dialogue. And then how they time the actors and train to appear simultaneously in various scenes.
As for the music – I don’t think I have much impression of it. Was there even a soundtrack? But I don’t think I missed it.
The Japan Creative Centre has changing exhibits but in its compact space you might finish looking at them quickly. A film detour may just complete the idyllic visit – though be sure you have another 114min for aruitemo aruitemo.
