The labour of transforming red adzuki beans into sweet glossy paste, which is then artfully sandwiched between two pancakes and devoured as dorayaki, is at the centre of An, a new film by award-winning director Naomi Kawase.
Sentaro, played by Masatoshi Nagase, runs a quiet bakery selling the Japanese confectionary to a handful of regular customers. One day, a chipper old lady comes to the shop asking for a job, challenging Sentaro to put more care and attention into his red bean paste (an) recipe. After trying Tokue’s homemade version, Sentaro reluctantly accepts her offer for help, and the business soon thrives. Though the focus is mainly on food, the film, set in the midst of Tokyo’s cherry blossom season, delves deeper into societal discrimination, kindness and hope.
• An, in selected cinemas from tomorrow. Watch the trailer here:
