I grasped an opportunity and bought the Japanese DVD. Naturally, the film prominently features Hisaishi's music. I love his film music, especially for Kitano, so I was curious about his first work as director. To sum it up, he should stick to his job as a composer. The story itself is about four young Japanese musicians forming a string quartet and their long way to fame enduring all kinds of setbacks and quarrels. You have seen it all before and Hisaishi doesn't add anything new. Technically there are no flaws, but on the other hand there is nothing spectacular or even interesting about the camera-work, his direction, the actors, not even the film music is up to his usual standards. All in all: Hisaishi's director's debut is nothing memorable. The moment you eject the DVD you also forget the film...
Review of Quartet
