Ryūsuke Hamaguchi’s “O Sentido da Vida” brings together a French anthropologist and a Japanese theater director in a story shaped by language, care and the possibility of human connection. The film moves between French and Japanese, as well as between theater and everyday life, patients and caregivers.
Marilou, played by Virginie Efira, manages a nursing home guided by “humanitate,” an approach that places patients at the center of treatment. For people with cognitive impairments, therapists work to evoke memories, encourage speech and support movement. Mari, a young director played by Tao Okamoto, meets Marilou while preparing a play, and the two quickly form a bond.
Their relationship deepens when Mari, who has cancer, enters Marilou’s clinic. The film does not avoid the difficulties of care, including the effort required to help frail older patients walk and to respond to the agitation of Tomoki, an autistic patient. Within the clinic’s philosophy, four forms of contact matter: looking, touch, speech and “verticality”—helping patients stand and walk, which Marilou sees as central to human freedom.
Efira and Okamoto shared the Best Actress award at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival for their performances. Efira learned to speak Japanese fluently for the role, beginning with the written language.
The film also reaches beyond its medical setting. Mari, who studied philosophy in France, presents a critique of capitalism through a drawing, combining image and language. Nature, too, is treated not simply as something serving humanity, but as part of a larger whole that includes people.
Rather than offering easy entertainment, Hamaguchi’s film aims to create an experience through exchanges among different people, languages and worlds. Its emphasis on looking and speaking is complemented by touch as a way of bringing people closer—even when they seem far apart.
Sources: Folha Ilustrada.