Love knows no age limit…
Who said romance is only for the young-hearted? Tae is 77, recently widowed, and in the mood for love. She wants to find someone she can spend the rest of her life with, and to do so she decides to join a dating agency, one that excels at bringing people together — the thing is, though, she is much older than their usual clientele. This won’t stop her though, she’s sick of the mundanity of retired life in her town, of going every week to the sports centre for the same group activities and the idea that she can’t move on and find someone new.
A Sparkle of Life brings up a lot of interesting questions about Japan’s ever-increasing older population, particularly of the services people are provided in later life and their place in society. Tae and her friends spend their time keeping fit in the local sports centre, when she’s not taking part in group activities run by her deceased husband’s best friend Shinji she’s at home talking to her son and estranged granddaughter. She spends a lot of time alone, so it’s no wonder she is hoping to find someone new.
Through the agency, and young clerk Ayako’s efforts, she meets a flurry of different men in their seventies, most of which aren’t exactly what she’s looking for. One man is in it for the cake, another just wants to sleep around, but when Yuichiro walks into the room there’s something different about him. He’s charming and genuinely interested in Tae and her life thus far. Before long they’re seeing each other regularly, but Shinji is convinced that there’s something off about the man and is determined to figure out what he’s hiding.
The film has a lot of heart; Tae is very lovable in her search for romance and this is mainly thanks to Kazuko Yoshiyuki’s nuanced performance. She’s resolute when faced with the disapproval of her son and the suspicions of Shinji, she won’t let anyone stand in her way from her goal and this makes her even more appealing as a character.
The elderly shouldn’t just be forgotten and left to a life in the shadows while the young roam freely, this is something that is true of society in general and it is lovely to see Bunji Satoyama’s film focus on this topic. It’s just as heart-warming and emotional as any stereotypical romantic-comedy, if not more so. To see these characters still at the peak of their lives is reassuring and as an audience we can’t help but root for Tae to achieve her goal. Love is for everyone, and A Sparkle of Life proves that age shouldn’t matter when telling a good story.