Hamabe no gêmu

Director Aimi Natsuto’s debut is an effervescent satire on sexual desire and social artifice. College friends Sayaka (Haruna Hori) and Yui (Juri Fukushima) visit Shonan Beach and meet Yui’s old pal Momoko (Nanaho Otsuka), where they stay at a quaint seaside villa attracting artistically-minded passers-through. From shady film professor to horny musician and would-be Korean couple, desire and delusion swirl as attraction between Sayaka and Yui is complicated by the trio’s dynamic. Immersed in the style of Éric Rohmer and featuring cameos from the Asian film scene, Natsuto’s “beach games” are a deceptively profound delight. (Japan Cuts)