The Night I Swam: some films do away with a proper, traditional plot; Igarashi Kohei and Damien Manivel’s quiet, slow-moving and dialogue-free drama is one such case, bearing witness to the small, low-key mischievous adventures of its young protagonist in the cold more than telling a story. They are, nevertheless, anchored in a few very clear drives he has, and the whole film says a lot about him, his family and the place they live in. The performances are minimalist, as befits the tone; Kogawa Takara is cute without being overly so, and also naturally curious and smart. Editor William Laboury gives the film a glacial pace; cinematographer Takahashi Wataru sets his camera as a quiet, distant observer, in precise frames.