Two elementary school brothers living in southern Japan are forced to live in different cities due to the estrangement of their parents. The younger, Ryunosuke, enjoys the freedom of residing with his guitar-playing dad. But the older, more solemn sibling, Koichi, who lives with his mom and grandparents, mourns the separation and prays that a volcano will erupt in his town, somehow bringing the brothers together. As in many of his films, director Hirokazu Korreda (Nobody Knows, Still Walking) gets by with the tiniest plot, allowing lengthy, miniature scenes of mood and atmosphere as he cuts between the two boys and their simple lives in different environs. At its worst, I Wish is static. At its best, it has the warmth and subtlety of classic Asian works by Edward Yang and Yasujiro Ozu.
