NIGHT FLOWER | Toronto Japanese Film Festival

Why we picked it

Natsuki has fled to Tokyo with her two children to escape debt collectors and now juggles multiple jobs including a seedy bar but just cant make ends meet. One night, outside the bar she witnesses an illicit drug deal gone wrong. Desperate, she decides this dangerous industry is the only way she can provide for her children. That choice brings her into contact with Tamae, an amateur kickboxer who gradually becomes Natsukis friend, protector and the operations enforcer.The film features standout performances from its two lead actresses and a fast-paced high-octane script. The grim world they inhabit offers up delicate glimmers of hope and human connection, but when a female college student dies, their fates take a dark and unexpected turn...A harrowing exploration of friendship and the extreme lengths a mother will go to protect her children in the dark shadows of the Tokyo underworld.CONTENT WARNING: MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR YOUNGER VIEWERSStarringKeiko Kitagawa, Misato Morita, Daisuke Sakuma, Ryuta Shibuya, Kiyohiko Shibukawa2025 Night Flower Film Partners*No exchange or refund.*Membership will be checked at the JCCC.