They Say Nothing Stays the Same

They Say Nothing Stays the Same (Japanese: ある船頭の話, Hepburn: Aru sendo no hanashi) is a 2019 drama film directed by Joe Odagiri and stars Akira Emoto. In the debut directorial feature by actor Joe Odagiri, this film follows an old ferryman in a remote Meiji era community. For years, he has transported people back and forth on a river amid unspoiled beauty. His placid and cyclical life is disturbed by the construction of the nearby bridge, and transformed by saving a girl floating in the water. Shot by Christopher Doyle and the debut film music feature by Tigran Hamasyan.^[1]

Toichi is a ferryman. He lives in a hut on the waterside and launches his boat when called upon. Some are arrogant enough to throw money at him, others are kind enough to share their food with him. The sound of a bridge being built can be heard in the distance. One day, he sees a ghost of the river on the waterside.

In one evening, a girl wrapped in cloth flows in. He brings her into his hut and care for her. In a village upstream, a family has been decapitated and killed, and a girl has been taken away. He hears such rumors from a passenger. The girl turns out to be alive but spends all the day staring at the surface of the river, not saying a word. When Nihei, a hunter, sees her, Toichi lies and says that she is the daughter of a relative who has been taken care of for a while. The ghost of the river reappears and says “I know you well.” One night, the girl is gone.

The doctor on his way to Nihei's father's house says, “If the bridge is built, will you lose your job?” A bridge laborer says, “If the bridge is built, who will get on such a shabby boat? If they are useless, they will all disappear.” Genzo, a young neighbor, says. ” Why don't we destroy that bridge before it's finished?” Toichi has a daydream. He and Genzo kill people crossing the bridge one after another, wielding knives. They stab a bridge laborer to death in his hut. The ghost of the river is watching the whole scene.

One night, the girl comes back. Toichi asks her if she has anywhere to go, and she shakes her head. On a day when there are no passengers, he takes the girl on his boat. The girl doesn't talk about herself, but only tells him her name is “Foo”. The girl suddenly jumps into the river, and when Toichi jumps in after her, she is swimming around in the river with a smile on her face. Toichi is relieved when Genzo goes to the village upstream and hears there were no murder.

On a night when it is raining heavily, Nihei's father dies. ”I have been kept alive by many lives, and I want to dedicate my body to the creatures of the forest”. In accordance with his dying wish, Toichi takes a boat in the middle of the night to carry his body to the forest, away from the eyes of people. Countless fireflies are dancing in the forest. Toichi tells the girl that he wants to become a person who can help others like Nihei's father.

Smoke rises from the bridge nearing completion. When Toichi rushes to the bridge, the ghost of the river appears and says, "That girl should have died that night. I took her life, and she was supposed to leave her body and wait for her next life. But she was saved by you. The girl will torment you."

The bridge is completed and winter has arrived. The riversides are covered with snow and oil is floating in the river. Toichi is completely in low spirits. Genzo, now better dressed, visits the hut with an arrogant attitude. He confirms that Toichi is away at the doctor's office, and brings the girl into the hut. When Toichi crosses the bridge and returns to the hut, he finds Genzo killed by slitting his throat. Toichi sets fire to the hut and launches his boat with the girl. The boat with the two on board goes down the river.

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, They Say Nothing Stays the Same has a 100% approval rating based on 15 reviews, with an average rating of 8.17/10.^[3] On Metacritic, based on 4 critics, the film has a 66/100 rating, signifying "Generally Favorable".^[4] Odagiri received the Golden Crow Pheasant for Best Film at the 2019 International Film Festival of Kerala for "a poetic tale of idyllic rural life being threatened by change in a uncompromising visual style,"^[5] and the Best Film, International Feature Film Competition Award of the 2019 Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival.^[6]

• Kino films: They Say Nothing Stays the Same
• They Say Nothing Stays the Same at IMDb
• Rotten Tomatos Indie
• Tigran Hamasyan - They Say Nothing Stays The Same - Soundtrack album of Joe Odagiri's film