The Milkwoman

Minako (TANAKA Yuko), begins her day running up and down the hills of her hometown delivering milk door to door. When that's done, she heads to her day job as a supermarket cashier. Minako is 50 and single. In one of the houses to which she delivers milk is a man with whom she has secretly been in love since high school. The man, Keita (KISHIBE Ittoku), lives with his wife Yoko, who is terminally ill. Caring for her at home, he works in the children's affairs section of the local municipal office. Though he insists that he wants nothing more than an "ordinary" existence, his life is in turmoil below the surface. The director uses a variety of narrative devises to portray the loneliness, isolation, and hope of these people who have seemingly allowed their goals and dreams to slip away, whilst keeping them agonizingly close to hand.

Billed Cast

Yuko Tanaka

Minako Oba

Ittoku Kishibe

Kaita Takanashi

Akiko Nishina

Yoko Takanashi

Koichi Ueda

Masao Minagawa

Teruyuki Kagawa

Manager of Super Market

Ippei Souda

Milk Shop Owner

H

Hazuki Kōzu

Nurse Watanabe

Rakuko Tane

Kimiko Ito

Erika Mabuchi

Mari Yoshida

Tatsuo Yamada

Yujiro Kawai

Yûrei Yanagi

Manager of Child Guidance Center

Sawa Suzuki

Chiyo Oba