The Ear Cleaner

A drama that presents a lively depiction of a woman plagued with unexplainable hearing problems who begins to look at herself in a new light when she starts working at an ear-cleaning parlor. Using ears as a motif, director Horiuchi Hiroshi delicately evokes emotional changes within young people. As the result of a disaster, Ena (Sakuragi Rina) ends up breaking up with her lover and even suffers the cancelation of a promise of work. As she begins to be troubled from ongoing hearing loss of unknown cause, she finds a job at an ear-cleaning parlor through an old friend. Then one day Ena is reunited with Yoshinobu (Nakata Akira), who is drawn to her beautiful ears.

Directed by Hiroshi Horiuchi, The Ear Cleaner leans on a strong ensemble — Rina Sakuragi, Sow Hirosawa, Akatsuki Nakata — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about drama titles of 2012.