The Deserted City (1984)

The Deserted City 1984 / 廃市 1984 / Haishi ,

After noticing in the news there was a fire in an old canal town, Eguchi recalls visiting there a decade ago as a university student, spending a summer while writing his thesis. It's a beautiful canal town, the ‟Venice of Japan.‟ As he arrives, he is greeted by the daughter of the Kaibara household, Yasuko. The rest of her family seems mysteriously absent. On his first night, Eguchi hears the stifled sound of crying. He attempts to find the source, and is soon drawn into the conflict that is tearing the family apart. While he likens the town to a dream, some of the inhabitants do not share his feelings. There is a sense of being stuck in time, with ruin and death the only future.