Asura is a compelling tale of sisterhood

In the period Japanese series Asura, Palme d'Or-winning Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda (Shoplifters, 2018) has gathered a highly talented cast to highlight the complicated bonds between sisters and spouses, and the ways women rebel and compromise in a rigidly patriarchal society.

- Jan Lee

The series, which opens in 1979, revolves around four sisters: eldest Tsunako (Rie Miyazawa), a widow who teaches the art of flower arrangement; second sister Makiko (Machiko Ono), a married housewife with teenage children; Takiko (Yu Aoi), a strait-laced librarian; and youngest Sakiko (Suzu Hirose), who is a free-spirited waitress.

When they discover their elderly father (Jun Kunimura) is having an affair and, possibly, has an illegitimate son, the sisters clash over how to best handle the situation.

Here are three reasons to tune in.

1 Portrait of sisterhood

As a family drama, Asura's appeal hinges on the four sisters in the story, and Kore-eda, who has made a career out of exploring familial or pseudo-familial relationships in his works, shines in this respect.

The unique tension between sisters is compellingly and realistically portrayed in Asura. Tsunako and Makiko, being the oldest who are closer in age to each other than their younger sisters, have a mellow and friendly bond. But both behave, at times, more like meddling and worried mothers to Takiko and Sakiko.