Perfect Days is a 2023 film directed by Wim Wenders. Hirayama works as a public toilet cleaner in Tokyo’s smart Shibuya ward, across town from his modest home in an unimproved neighbourhood. He repeats his structured, ritualized life every day starting at dawn. He dedicates his free time to his passion for music, photography and books, which he reads every night before going to sleep. Hirayama treats trees as friends and spends time gardening and photographing them. He has a sandwich every day under trees in the grounds of a shrine, and takes photos of their branches and leaves with an Olympus mju. Niko, Hirayama’s niece, shows up unannounced; he lets her accompany him to work and the two photograph the trees in the park.
On his free day Hirayama takes the film to be developed and collects the prints from the previous week. He takes the wallet of prints home, kneels down to open it and places the pictures he wants to keep in a tin box, he has a cupboard full of them. He destroys the rejected pictures.
Perfect Days is a wonderful film (concept, directing, acting and so on) and Hirayama’s photography is but a small part of the way in which his character is developed. I highlight it simply because it was a powerful reminder of the joy of analogue photography. Digital photography offers endless creative possibilities and undoubted convenience and economy, but with it we sacrifice the serendipitous joy of the first sight of the developed film and contact sheet or opening the wallet of prints from the processing house. The deferred gratification is at one with Hirayama’s approach to life, which owes a lot to the idea of being in the moment. His response to the impatience of his niece to go to the sea is to say, ‘Next time is next time; now is now’.
See also posts14th August 2021, 8th May 2023 and 7th July 2023
As a big WW fan, I am really looking forward to seeing this. Thanks for bringing it to my attention!
Thanks, Roy, I’m sure you will enjoy it.
On another matter, did you get my e-mails about Alina and Lucy’s book?
Hi Brian – I hope you are well and good to read your blog. Perfect Days is such a terrific film. The photographs Hirayama takes and selects are one brilliant part of that. Another recent film was Lee – although screen time was spent watching her light a cigarette, I was disappointed they didn’t show her re-loading the twin lens reflex camera and saving the film roll, which she would have been doing all the time.
Hi Roger,
It’s good to hear from you.
I’m pleased you liked this posting on my blog – agree a brilliant film.
I thought Lee was terrific, but I take your point – perhaps it’s just us photo anoraks who would notice.
Best wishes for 2025.
Brian