Like Someone in Love

While Woody Allen’s recent European ventures have produced distinctly mixed results, Abbas Kiarostami’s travels are proving to be much more rewarding. The great Iranian director follows his mysterious Tuscan romance Certified Copy with Tokyo-set Like Someone in Love; from the incredible opening shot onwards, it's clear Kiarostami’s cinematic language translates perfectly in any setting.

As in his previous film, the director sets us up to expect a familiar tale before he starts springing surprises. A pretty Japanese student (Takanashi) arrives at the apartment of an ageing professor (Okuno). As soon as we think we know how this premise will play out, Kiarostami shifts direction, with the nature of role-playing and human interactions again being his prime interest.

Like Someone in Love exemplifies all of the director's finest qualities: the unhurried pacing, the fluid approach to story and character, the masterful use of space. Of course, there’s also a central sequence set in a car, although I doubt Kiarostami has ever shot one as lovely and entrancing as this beguiling nocturnal ride. [Philip Concannon]