Welcome to my 2026 project honoring the first quarter of the 21st century. In this extremely lax project I watch a movie from each year to hopefully give myself some insight with what has changed within cinema during this century. At the very least I’ll have watched 25 interesting films and paired them with a dinner inspired by the movie, the place its from, and maybe a little bit of nostalgia for the past 25 years. You can watch along with me or find out what’s up next by checking out the full list of movies.
Today’s feature is from the year 2020, we are headed to Japan to explore time in…
Movie: ドロステのはてで僕ら [Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes]
Year: 2020
Director: Junta Yamaguchi
Country: Japan
The Elevator Pitch: Kato accidentally discovers that his monitor allows him to see exactly 2 minutes in the future. Well, what good is that even!?
How Was the Movie?:
This is a real gem of a movie that I would suggest to anyone who likes a good comedic play. The movie mainly takes place in a small closed cafe and an apartment with few characters but it manages to get huge mileage and a lot of laughs out of very sparse things.
As many of the people who review the film point out it makes intensely more sense and is more clever than Tenet and is also reminiscent of another Japanese darling recent film, One Cut of the Dead (which I also highly recommend).
This film is a svelte 70 minutes but I don’t think it could have reasonably sustained itself any longer than that so maybe it doesn’t fit in the concept of movie but it was made with a dozen people and ¥3 million (about 18k USD) you really can’t ask for more.
The concept is very easy to grasp and the movie is so clever in its cuts and concepts that it’s just a really enjoyable ride from start to finish. My husband and I quoted it a lot the following few days because it’s just that cute.
This movie takes advantage of modern technology also (phones, computers, internet, etc.) which is always just kind of refreshing to see.
I don’t have a lot to say because beyond the premise everything else is a kind of a spoiler since the movie is so short it basically wastes almost no time after the 2 minute walk through the space to set it up. I will say that the translated title is interesting because the original title ドロステのはてで僕ら [Dorosute no hate de bokura] translates to “Us at the Droste’s edge”. I had to look up what Droste was but of course, the movie just tells you if you want to remain surprised.
10/10 recommend for anyone who likes a giggle and time travel.
What was for Dinner?:
For dinner I made the classic staple oyakodon, miso soup, and the store had Japanese beer so how could I resist?
If I knew how easy it was to make oyakodon I probably would have done it more in the last 30 years. It’s basically just chicken, onions, and sauce simmered together that you pour eggs over and cook until it sets. I will absolutely make this again because it’s so easy and quick and delicious.
I’ve made and had miso soup about 4000 times but the whole meal together with like a big hug especially because it was paired with such a fun movie. Honestly this was a great combo and it’s hard not to love when things just work out.
That’s it for 2020, see you in the future year of 2021!