Only Yesterday

Sugimoto Taeko moves in with her daughter Natsuki and granddaughter Mizuki. They begin a lively life together. In the midst of it all, Taeko sees her former self in Mizuki. The bitter taste of the first pineapple she ever ate, the disastrous score on a math test, the awakening of her acting spirit at a school performance. As Taeko recalls her elementary school days, she unleashes a dream that she had long given up on and sealed away. 'I'm going to be on stage!' Taeko immediately auditions and devotes herself to rehearsing for a Shakespeare play. But just then, the theatre where she was going to perform goes bankrupt, and she is forced to give up on her dream again!

Directed by Kazutaka Watanabe, Only Yesterday leans on a strong ensemble — Keiko Matsuzaka, Anne Watanabe, Kazuyuki Asano — 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 tv movie titles of 2021.