Tokyo festival features Yoshida’s films of hope amid despair

By YURI KAGEYAMA
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Boxers, janitors, fishermen, the heroes of Keisuke Yoshida’s movies are Japanese society’s angst-filled losers, struggling in an imperfect world. The director and his three latest works are featured at the Tokyo International Film Festival opening Oct. 30. Yoshida told The Associated Press that what’s lacking in the world is the power of the imagination, the ability to understand what others might be experiencing. Yoshida’s works explore petty jealousies, hidden guilt and other dark sides of the human condition. Yet Yoshida also believes in the potential for change.