Kai (Hideki Nagai) runs a photography business where the majority of his clients want their image touched up, blemishes removed, and generally made to look more like the perceived version of ‘beauty’. Away from his day job, he is passionate about photographing insects (his companion at home is a praying mantis – a heavy piece of symbolism and a character in itself). While out pursuing his hobby, a woman, Kyoko (Itsuki Otaki) falls out of the trees in front of him while attempting to take a shot for her social media followers. She asks for a ride back and when seeing his photo studio, lets him digitally remove her scar. From there, an awkward friendship (he doesn’t to speak to her) begins as their obsessions take over.
Writer/director Takeshi Kushida’s film tackles a subject that’s incredibly relevant with the digital age in which we can’t believe what we see, but as long as no harm is done, “A good lie can make people happy”, as one character says. Kyoko learns that her scars – which don’t heal – are part of her, and her followers seem to like it, but it’d not a moral that works out in the social media world. It takes a while to get into any elements of genre, but once it does, comparisons to Cronenberg are evident. Long passages without dialogue allow the viewer to concentrate on the visuals and sound design, often giving an ASMR reaction.
Woman in the Photographs looks at how body image has become something fake and relationships more distant. Beautifully filmed, and engagingly acted, it’s a curious, rewarding watch.
