FILM: GLOBAL

I Wish

Japanese director Hirokazu Koreeda’s latest feature is a well-acted, sympathetic portrayal of three generations of the fractured Osako family. The film centres on estranged brothers – 12-year-old Koichi who lives with his mother in Kagoshima and younger Ryunosuke who lives with his father in the northern city of Fukuoka. Each sibling is fixated on their parents’ relationship, the elder on reuniting them and the younger brother wary of unhappiness he vividly remembers. Played by real-life brothers Koki and Oshiro Maeda, this charming film beautifully explores childhood and yearning for a miraculous cure to complex problems.

“I Wish” is now at cinemas across the UK.
magpictures.com/iwish

FESTIVAL: MONTRÉAL

Montréal en Lumière

It’s freezing in Montréal in February but fine wine and hot food is enough to make you forget about the winter weather. The annual festival Montréal en Lumière combines outdoor activities, dining and culture events, with chefs from guest city, Buenos Aires cooking up specialties in local Montréal restaurants this year. After 11 days of celebration, the festival ends with an all-nighter on 2 March with 185 activities ranging from art exhibitions to concerts planned for this chilly Nuit Blanche.

Montréal en Lumière is at various venues across the city. Until 3 March.
montrealenlumiere.com

ART: TOKYO

Valerie Mallory Gallery at Common Gallery

Be sure to catch the Valerie Mallory Gallery’s exhibition being held at Common Gallery on Harajuku’s Cat Street in Tokyo this weekend before it vanishes back into the virtual world. Usually online only, Valerie Mallory Gallery’s physical exhibition features the works of an eclectic group of up-and-coming international artists such as Danny Sangra, Andrew de Francesco and Chrissie Abbott. Dreamy, bizarre and at times outrageous, the show ends this Sunday.

Common Gallery 2F, 5-11-1 Jingu-mae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo. Open daily 12.00-19.00. Until 24 February.
thevaleriemallorygallery.com

FILM: UK

The Last Days of Dolwyn

Good news for those who appreciate a bit of old-school British melodrama, The Last Days of Dolwyn has been digitally remastered and is released this week on DVD. The 1949 classic sees a dashing, youthful Richard Burton in his second major role. Set in imaginary Dolwyn in north Wales, the story focuses on a fight to save the village and its way of life from flooding to build a dam. Burton’s youthful zeal is as distant-a-memory as this great era in British filmmaking but the The Last Days of Dolwyn evokes them both in ample measure.

“The Last Days of Dolwyn” is available to buy now.
studiocanal.co.uk

MUSIC: GLOBAL

Cole & Roedelius: Selected Studies Vol 1

Lloyd Cole made his name leading jangly 1980s British bedsit-poppers Lloyd Cole and the Commotions. Hans-Joachim Roedelius on the other hand, was one half of legendary German progressive electronic music pioneers Cluster. So far, so weird. But Selected Studies Vol 1 actually plays on both artists’ strengths. In these likeable slabs of ambient electronica, Cole’s whimsical melodies are all there and Roedelius’ hardnosed commitment of rarely, if ever, doing the same thing twice (Cluster albums and shows were often improvised) means there’s no danger of complacency. Even on this – a comfortingly odd listen.

Selected Studies Vol 1 is available to buy now.
bureau-b.com