by Hal Erickson
synopsis
Released in English-speaking countries as Rice and The Rice People, Japanese filmmaker Tadashi Imai's Kome is perfectly in keeping with his previous paeans to the proletariat. The heroes and heroines of the piece are all rice farmers, struggling to eke out an existence in an unfriendly world. The main plotlines concern a pair of benighted lovers and an elderly mother who falls victim to the excesses of government officials. Also prominently featured is a gang of juveniles who reject tradition by refusing to work the rice fields, turning instead to fishing and illegal poaching. On the strength of Imai's vaunted reputation, Kome was entered into competition at the Cannes Film Festival.
