Asako I & II
Bitters End | Release Date: May 17, 2019 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
69
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
14
Mixed:
5
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
TheWrapSteve PondMay 17, 2018
There are moments of real beauty in the film, which is an unassuming and contemplative excursion into how we love, and why. But like the fireworks that greet Asako and Baku’s first kiss, its pop is a modest one. Read full review
91
The A.V. ClubLawrence GarciaMay 14, 2019
This is a film that, through its deceptively mellow means, manages to plumb the depths of what it truly means to love amid the uncertainties of self, others, and everything else besides. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangAug 22, 2019
A peculiarly potent story about life’s unexpected little ruptures — those odd coincidences, repetitions and shifts in perspective that can set off aftershocks in the human heart. Read full review
90
The New York TimesGlenn KennyMay 16, 2019
Asako proceeds from a premise that flirts with the mystic, but Hamaguchi executes it with elegantly rendered realism. (It is adapted from a 2010 novel by Tomoka Shibasaki.) The result is a picture that is simultaneously engaging and disconcerting. Read full review
84
Paste MagazineAndrew CrumpMay 22, 2019
Asako I & II is an easygoing movie, at least if the film’s exterior is taken at its words. Under the hood, it’s roiling. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd May 17, 2018
Hamaguchi exhibits a careful, un-showy command of the frame, and a talent for creating small, sometimes comic surprises through editing. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy BurrJul 27, 2019
The movie keeps you guessing, mostly in pleasure, at both its meanings and its methods. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineChuck BowenSep 2, 2018
Like Happy Hour, Asako I & II is a parable of the grace — and, yes, happiness — that spring from resignation. Read full review
75
IndieWireEric KohnMay 17, 2018
Hamaguchi finds ways of crystallizing the movie’s themes, lingering on contemplative moments that position the entire story as a metaphor for the contrast between the fantasies and realities of relationships, as well as the messy negotiation required to navigate those extremes. Read full review
70
The New YorkerRichard BrodyMay 13, 2019
Brilliant melodramatic flourishes adorn the blank center of this passionate fable. Read full review
70
Film ThreatAlex SavelievApr 17, 2019
Higashide effortlessly switches between the two polar-opposite men, both utterly convincing. Read full review
67
Original-CinLiam LaceyMay 30, 2019
While most romantic melodramas and rom-coms play with the idea of destiny, the bittersweet Japanese oddity Asako I & II makes it something of a central character. Read full review
67
The Film StageGiovanni Marchini CamiaMay 17, 2018
As with the several other slight departures from realism, the artifice added to the story proves distracting. Without being successfully integrated, such choices fail to bestow the narrative with depth and pathos as intended, but only draw attention to the flimsiness of the its construction. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comSimon AbramsMay 17, 2019
To be clear: Asako I & II is not a bad movie, just one that doesn't convey much beyond its creators' intentions. There are moments of poetic beauty scattered throughout, like the few scenes that don't push the otherwise cloud-light plot along. Read full review
60
VarietyMaggie LeeMay 17, 2018
Hamaguchi extols his source for a compelling representation of love as a mystic experience. However, what gets transferred to the screen becomes more like banal indecision. Read full review
60
The GuardianPeter BradshawMay 17, 2018
This is an amusing essay in amorous delusion. Read full review
58
The PlaylistJoseph OwenFeb 4, 2019
This strange, deliberately naïve film plunges a high-concept romance into a banal, lifeless world. Read full review
50
Screen DailyJonathan RomneyMay 17, 2018
While Higashi proves adept at embodying both extremes, Karata proves a rather insipid centre to the film, not just because of the actress’s bland pertness but because of the passivity of the character. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterStephen DaltonMay 17, 2018
A banal and patronizing cautionary sermon for lovestruck ladies torn between heart and head, sexy-dangerous bad boys and dependably dull husband types. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleG. Allen JohnsonJun 19, 2019
Asako’s only appeal seems to be that she’s very pretty. Her depth of character she apparently keeps to herself. Read full review
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