Summary: Manzo is a fisherman in a small seaside community who lives and works alone, but longs for a relationship and maybe a wife. When a sign is posted advertising a matchmaking party with city women, all the men gussy themselves up and videotape themselves for the dating service. Manzo borrows a camcorder and tries his luck, but his rehearsed speech doesn't go as planned. When showing the videotape to the prospective dates, he discovers something unusual: There is a woman and her son living in one of his closets. Instead of kicking them out, he encourages them to stay and develops a relationship with them that makes the other fishermen jealous. Takatsugu Norito's feature is full of deadpan, silent film comedy that is inspired in equal parts by Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. It makes you remember how much can be said with only facial expressions, small actions and music. Of course, the more we learn about the mother and child, the more fragile the relationship becomes. Like a fairy tale with a bittersweet edge, The Dark Harbor brings you into the world of Manzo and shows you just how charming one lonely fisherman can be.
Futoko
2009
Japan
The Dark Harbour
