FANTASIA 2023: ‘River’ Is Another Unforgettable Time Travel Masterpiece By Junta Yamaguchi

Junta Yamaguchi’s Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes easily remains one of the best sci-fi movies of this decade. Now it has company because the Japanese director is back with another microbudget time travel masterpiece: River, a sci-fi showcase of immense heart and creativity that had its North American premiere at Fantasia Fest 2023.

It’s another busy day in Fujiya, a beautiful inn located in the snowy town of Kibune. Waitress Mikoto (Riko Fujitani) is working hard to keep the guests happy, so she takes a little breath near the river flowing on the side of the inn. She then goes upstairs to help her boss clean a room, but suddenly she’s back in the river again! Things go déjà vu because everyone in the zone is trapped in a time loop that resets every two minutes. No matter what Makoto and everyone else do or where they go, after 120 seconds they always go back to the same place.

Of course, this creates confusion and panic among the guests, which include two old friends catching up over dinner, a writer worried about a deadline, and a publicist who can’t finish his bath. Now, Mikoto and the rest of the hotel staff must try to keep the guests calm as well as find the cause of this bizarre time phenomenon while having to deal with the fact that they always reset to their ‘default’ position every two minutes.

Makoto Ueda crafts an outstanding script that contains similar levels of heart, intelligence, and fun. Despite its premise, the film is never repetitive. Quite the opposite: every loop is a little story of its own. Each reset comes with a new purpose for the characters, as well as obstacles to overcome, and due to the obvious time constraints, there’s an urgency to everything. This element makes the movie flow like its title. The characters have to use their two minutes wisely. Maybe they have to explain the situation to their guests, rush to a meeting place to come up with a plan, or even try to escape the madness. There’s charm, variety, and a lot of humor in every loop.

Superbly performed by Riko Fujitani, Mikoto’s arc is heartfelt and thoroughly developed, but hers is not the only one. Pretty much every character besides Mikoto has a story of their own; regardless of their screen time or number of lines. Whether it’s a fascinating new conflict, a philosophical idea, or simply humo, everyone contributes in some way to the overall narrative. The script flawlessly uses everyone’s arcs to convey a beautiful reflection of our relationship with time. Sometimes we wish we could go back in time to change things or we keep obsessing about the future, but it’s important to live here and now. Time is like a river and even if we’re stuck in a two-minute loop, we can learn to enjoy every second.

Despite the minuscule budget, the production is top-notch. Every single cinematographic tool available to Yamaguchi is wisely used to propel the story forward and engage the audience. The inn and its surroundings are used as a maze of sorts that Mikoto has to meticulously navigate; as an audience, it’s a blast to explore these locations alongside her. The long takes used during the time loops add to the sense of urgency and chaos and the fantastic editing effortlessly keeps the energy flowing. Koji Takimoto’s brilliant score is also so simple yet incredibly charming and subtly hectic.

Yamaguchi’s direction is an astonishing balancing act because not only does River perfectly pulls off an ambitious time loop concept, but it also presents lovable characters, delves into existential themes, develops a beautiful romance story, and even touches on some dark themes with exquisite tact. 

River is an endlessly charming example of science fiction done right. There’s no need for pretentious explanations or big special effects if you have creativity, a smart script, and the heart in the right place. River has all of that and so much more.

River had its North American premiere at Fantasia Fest 2023.