Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Like Someone in Love Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 2, 2013

Nominated for the Palme d'Or Award at the Cannes Film Festival, Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami's "Like Someone in Love" (2012) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors New Wave Films. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer and a documentary film. In Japanese, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

I am not going...

In a chic bar in Tokyo, Hiroshi (Denden, Cold Fish, Himizu), a pushy but elegant pimp, asks Akiko (Rin Takanashi, Love Actually, Killers), a beautiful student and part-time escort girl, to meet a client in Yokohama. At first Akiko refuses because she wants to see her grandmother who is visiting the city for a day, but Hiroshi quickly changes her mind. In the taxi, Akiko listens to her grandmother’s phone messages and cries.

The client is Takashi Watanabe (Tadashi Okuno, A Taxing Woman), a retired sociology professor who lives alone in a small apartment full of books and paintings. Takashi welcomes Akiko and the two quickly warm up to each other. But before Takashi can serve the traditional soup he has prepared for his guest, Akiko falls asleep in his bed.

On the following morning Takashi drives Akiko to the local university, where she is confronted by her jealous boyfriend Noriaki (Ryo Kase, Outrage Beyond). After they part ways, Noriaki introduces himself to Takashi, assuming that he is her grandfather. Then he tells Takashi that he has wanted to meet and talk to him for a long time because he plans to marry Akiko. Rather reluctantly, the old man assumes the role of the elusive grandfather.

Eventually, Noriaki discovers the truth about Takashi and Akiko’s relationship and all hell breaks loose.

The title of Abbas Kiarostami’s latest film comes from the classic Ella Fitzgerald song "Like Someone in Love". The film is also only the second one to be written and shot by the Iranian director outside of his native country. (The first was the beautiful Certified Copy with Juliette Binoche and William Shimell).

The minimalistic style and structure of Like someone in Love remind of Yasujiro Ozu’s films. Kiarostami’s camera spends a great deal of time observing the main protagonists as they communicate and try to evaluate each other. When important confessions are made, the melodrama is also kept to an absolute minimum.

The role playing is fairly basic, but Kiarostami is fascinated by it. At times it literally feels like his camera does not want to turn away after the discussions have ended. Indeed, a Japanese director would not have captured a lot of what is seen between the discussions. However, this rather unusual fascination with Japanese sensibilities and passions is essentially what makes Like Someone in Love so fascinating to behold.

Admittedly, the pacing could frustrate some viewers, but those who don’t mind naturalistic intimate films in which the action isn’t as important as the atmosphere will be delighted by it. To be perfectly clear, the entire film is like an exotic blind date – some viewers will be thrilled to have spent time with it, but some will simply conclude that it was not meant for them.

Takanashi looks appropriately brittle and sincere. The sequence where she asks the taxi driver to circle around the station and quietly sobs is one of the best in the entire film. Okuno is also very convincing as the gentle professor. The great Japanese actor Denden’s time in front of the camera is limited but he also manages to impress.

Like Someone in Love Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.66:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Abbas Kiarostami's Like Someone in Love arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors New Wave Films.

Shot digitally, Like Someone in Love has the appropriate clean and smooth look. Detail is excellent even during sequences where light is subdued, while clarity is consistently pleasing. During close-ups with plenty of natural light, one can easily see even extremely small details. Contrast is stable, but the film does not have a contrasty look. To be clear, the film is naturally crisp, smooth, and clean. Colors are wonderfully saturated but very natural. There are absolutely no compression anomalies to report in this review. Also, there are no serious stability issues. All in all, Like Someone in Love looks quite beautiful on Blu-ray, which is why I feel confident that its fans will be completely satisfied with New Wave Films' technical presentation. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Like Someone in Love Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 3.0 and Japanese LPCM 2.0. For the record, New Wave Films have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature.

I cannot say that there is a notable gap in quality between the two lossless tracks. I viewed the film with the DTS-HD Master Audio 3.0 track and later on tested different sequences with the LPCM 2.0 track, but in terms of dynamic intensity they appear to be practically identical. The film also does not have a prominent soundtrack, so in terms of balance there are no discrepancies to be reported either. The dialog is exceptionally clean, stable, and very easy to follow. The English translation is outstanding.

Like Someone in Love Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original trailer for Like Someone in Love. With music only, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Making of Someone in Love - an outstanding documentary in which director Abbas Kiarostami explains what inspired him to shoot Like Someone in Love, and discusses his work with the Japanese actors, the style of the film, his preference for digital formats/cameras, etc. In Persian, with optional English subtitles. (46 min).

Like Someone in Love Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sometimes less is more. And this is precisely the case with director Abbas Kiarostami's Like Someone in Love, a simple but very elegant and quite exotic film about the games people play while looking for love and other things that matter. Admirers of the Iranian master's work will not be disappointed with it. British distributors New Wave Films' technical presentation of the film is outstanding. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.