Movies Like GOOD-FOR-NOTHING

Yoshida's first feature follows the lives of young students against a background of jazz, emptiness and boredom. The plot is fairly simple: a "good-for-nothings" from a poor background falls in love with the young secretary of his rich friend's father. The woman senses good in him and tries to lead him on the right path. But to paraphrase Roger Ebert: it's not what a film is about but how it is about it. In the case of Rokudenashi, beautiful lighting and composition highlight this early work of the Japanese New Wave