Kirschblüten - Hanami (Cherry Blossoms). 2008. Germany. Written and directed by Doris Dörrie. With Elmar Wepper, Hannelore Elsner, Aya Irizuki. In German; Japanese with English subtitles. 35mm. 127 min.
Doris Dörrie is one of the many filmmakers introduced to New York audiences via the New Directors/New Films festival and MoMA’s focus on new German cinema—initiatives for which Adrienne Mancia worked with colleagues to highlight new, adventurous film languages that would complement New York’s commercial premieres. Cherry Blossoms, one of Dörrie’s most recent works, takes inspiration from Yasujiro Ozu’s Tokyo Story (1953) in telling the story of grandparents traveling to Berlin and meeting their grown children. Unanticipated events take the audience to the other side of the world, inviting us to find common ground in another culture and look at ourselves in new, unexpected ways.