I had never heard about "Journey to the Shore" (aka "Kishibe no tabi") before stumbling upon it here in mid-2019. But it being a Japanese movie was more than sufficient to make me sit down and watch it, as I have a big interest and love for the Asian cinema.
"Journey to the Shore" was a mixed experience for me. First of all, the movie was way, way too slow paced. It literally felt like you got almost nowhere during the 2 hours and almost 10 minutes that the movie ran for. That was a massive hindrance for the enjoyment of the movie. And with its unfathomably slow pace, the movie was also burdened by a storyline that offered very little to the audience.
The movie does, however, have some really good acting performances. And the movie was so phenomenally carried by Eri Fukatsu, playing Mizuki. Just a shame that the movie was holding her back, because she definitely have some talent to her craft.
"Journey to the Shore" is not a movie that will appeal to everyone out there. It is something of an acquired taste. And you must have a great patience and a liking for pseudo-avantgarde drama with very little happening throughout the course of the entire length of the feature.
It was a test of my mettle to sit through "Journey to the Shore", but I persevered and stuck with it to the end. Was I entertained? No, not particularly. And I found the overall movie to be less than mediocre, actually. And that is why I am rating "Journey to the Shore" a mere four out of ten stars. If the movie had more contents to the storyline and a more upscaled pacing, then it would have been so much better. This is definitely not a movie that I will watch a second time.
