Children’s tale that grows old

From the first moments of Hirokazu Kore-eda’s beguiling but long-winded “Nobody Knows” there is a disquieting undertone that builds continually. A young mother, Keiko (TV personality You) assures her new landlords that her 12-year-old son, Akira, (Yuya Yagira) is a quiet, studious boy who will present no problem. In a flash she and Akira sneak in her three younger children. In a singsong tone, as if she were telling a nursery rhyme, Keiko sweetly but firmly instructs her youngsters that they are never to scream or speak loudly -- and except for Akira, they are never to leave the apartment. Her next oldest, Kyoko (Ayu Kitaura), however, will be allowed to sneak out on the balcony, where the washing machine is located, to do the laundry.

These two and feisty little Shigeru (Hiei Kimura) and 5-year-old Yuki (Momoko Shimizu) are all attractive and adorable youngsters. It appears to be a loving family, and as childish as Keiko seems, she is affectionate with her children, all of whom have different fathers. The trouble is that Keiko, who has a department store job, is gone for many hours at a time, and eventually takes off for a month. The next time she departs, Akira, wise and weary way beyond his years, in time senses that she will never return.

Although the apartment is in a decent building in a pleasant Tokyo neighborhood and larger than what the family has been used to, the prospect of children hidden and denied education is disturbing to say the least, no matter how loving the circumstances may be. What’s more, Keiko is repellent from the outset, an utterly irresponsible airhead, always on the lookout for the next man and quick to chide her kids when they express a desire to go to school, which she assures them is neither fun nor necessary.

Gradually yet relentlessly, “Nobody Knows,” which was inspired by a true story, turns into an increasingly severe struggle for survival as Akira, who shoulders responsibility for his siblings as best he can, watches their financial resources dwindle. Indeed, at two hours and 21 minutes, the film affords the viewer more than enough time to speculate about just how Akira manages to pay the rent -- even after the water and power are turned off. Akira, who longs to play baseball, trusts only a few other youngsters who help him out, but the film strains credibility in regard to this 12-year-old’s ability, as resilient and resourceful as he is, to hold his family together with so little outside help. Fairly early on, Akira decides the kids should no longer stay confined to the apartment, and that there are no consequences serves to make the film’s overriding point about the world’s indifference to the plight of these children, who increasingly resemble street urchins.

There is an indomitable spirit to this film, especially in Yagira’s deeply felt portrayal of Akira, and there is a wealth of incidental, telling detail and some humor as well. The trouble is that with its lengthy running time “Nobody Knows” becomes grueling and drawn-out.

*

‘Nobody Knows’

MPAA rating: PG-13 for mature thematic elements and some sexual references

Times guidelines: Too intense for children

Yuya Yagira...Akira

Ayu Kitaura...Kyoko

Hiei Kimura...Shigeru

Momoko Shimizu...Yuki

You...Keiko

An IFC Films release of a TV Man Union Inc. production in association with Bandai Visual Co., Engine Film Inc., c-style and Cine Qua Non. Writer-producer-director-editor Hirokazu Kore-eda. Executive producer Yutaka Shigenobu. Cinematographer Yutaka Yamazaki. Music Gontiti. Art directors Toshihiro Isomi, Keiko Mitsumatsu. In Japanese with English subtitles. Running time: 2 hours, 21 minutes.

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