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A Pale View of Hills

Play trailer Poster for A Pale View of Hills 2025 2h 3m Drama History Play Trailer Watchlist
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60% Tomatometer 20 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
Desperate to understand her family's past in Japan before her birth, Niki probes her mother, Etsuko, about their time in Nagasaki. Told through flashbacks, Etsuko recounts the tale of a friend she knew long ago.... Spanning the two timelines, the film is a moving and hopeful account of the generational impact of war and tragedy on one family.

Critics Reviews

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Tara Brady Irish Times 3d
3.5/5
It’s a film of visual elegance and melancholic intent, yet it often feels as elusive as the memories it seeks to dramatise. Go to Full Review David Sexton New Statesman 3d
Very little has been altered... “When an adaptation of a well-known book doesn’t work, 95 per cent of the time it’s because the filmmakers have been too reverential.” Kazuo Ishiguro himself said that, and he always talks sense. Go to Full Review Peter Bradshaw Guardian 4d
2/5
It is a bland, soggy film whose contrived and anticlimactic surprise ending is not delivered with a clear satisfying twist. Go to Full Review Jennie Kermode Eye for Film 2d
3.5/5
All of this fine work has potential, but too often the deeper ideas in the book are teased only to be abandoned." Go to Full Review Amelia Harvey Movies We Texted About Nov 19
Ultimately, A Pale View of Hills suffers from the pitfalls of adapting literature for the big screen. It simply can’t penetrate the psyche of repressed and ambiguous characters to maintain the nuance without distancing the audience. Go to Full Review Robert Stinner In Review Online Sep 15
A Pale View of Hills ultimately does not outmatch its formidable source material, but Ishikawa has crafted an admirable counterpart. Go to Full Review Read all reviews
A Pale View of Hills

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Cast & Crew

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Kei Ishikawa

Director

Suzu Hirose

Niki

Fumi Nikaidô

Actor

Yô Yoshida

Actor

Camilla Aiko

Actor

Kouhei Matsushita

Actor
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A Pale View of Hills

A Pale View of Hills (2025) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Desperate to understand her family's past in Japan before her birth, Niki probes her mother, Etsuko, about their time in Nagasaki. Told through flashbacks, Etsuko recounts the tale of a friend she knew long ago.... Spanning the two timelines, the film is a moving and hopeful account of the generational impact of war and tragedy on one family.
Director
Kei Ishikawa
Producer
Miyuki Fukuma, Marta Gmosinska
Screenwriter
Kei Ishikawa
Production Co
Bunbuku
Genre
Drama, History
Original Language
Japanese
Runtime
2h 3m