Super Happy Forever

Super Happy Forever
Directed by	Kohei Igarashi
Written by	Kohei Igarashi Koichi Kubodera
Starring	Hiroki Sano Yoshinori Miyata Nairu Yamamoto Hoàng Nhu Quýnh
Cinematography	Wataru Takahashi
Edited by	Keiko Okawa Kohei Igarashi Damien Manivel
Music by	Daigo Sakuragi
Release date	28 August 2024 (2024-08-28)(Venice)
Countries	France Japan
Language	Japanese

Super Happy Forever is a 2024 French-Japanese comedy-drama film co-written and directed by Kohei Igarashi. ^[1] The film premiered at the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in the Giornate degli Autori sidebar. ^{[2] [3]} It won the Grand Prix for Best Film at the 2024 Film Fest Gent and the Golden Puffin at the Reykjavík International Film Festival. ^{[4] [5]}

Plot

The film opens in 2023 with longtime friends Sano and Miyata visiting a resort hotel at Atami on the Izu peninsula in the final days before it closes down. Sano is mourning the very recent death of his wife Nagi, and his behaviour strains the relationship with Miyata, until Miyata leaves.

The film then slips back in time to 2018, exactly five years earlier, when we see Nagi in the same room as the boys will occupy in the future. She was supposed to be travelling with a friend, but has been let down. She falls in with Sano and Miyata who are also at the hotel. The three of them explore the town. Later Sano and Nagi go clubbing together and wander through the evening chatting. They arrange to meet again the following morning before returning home. Next morning, Nagi forgets the rendezvous, but Sano finds her after they have both checked out of the hotel.

Back in 2023, the hotel is finally closed down and the staff move on. Apart from the three protagonists, a number of significant elements link the two timelines: a red baseball cap; a Vietnamese chambermaid (Anh); and the Bobby Darin song, Beyond the Sea. The final scene makes the connection explicit.

Main cast

• Hiroki Sano as Sano
• Yoshinori Miyata as Miyata
• Nairu Yamamoto as Nagi
• Hoàng Nhu Quýnh as Anh

Reception

Reviewing for The Guardian , Cath Clarke described Super Happy Forever as a "gentle, straightforward drama, beautifully acted and emotionally tuned in", awarding it four stars out of five. ^[6]

References

1. Hadfield, James (3 October 2024). "'Super Happy Forever': Melancholy romance makes most of fleeting happiness". The Japan Times . Retrieved 3 November 2024.
2. Lodge, Guy (29 August 2024). "'Super Happy Forever' Review: Nostalgia Can't Mend a Broken Heart In a Gentle Japanese Charmer". Variety . Retrieved 3 November 2024.
3. Dalby, Alexa (29 August 2024). "VENICE 2024: Super happy forever (2024)". Dog And Wolf. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
4. Engelen, Aurore (21 October 2024). "Super Happy Forever wins the Grand Prize at Ghent". Cineuropa . Retrieved 3 November 2024.
5. Morton, Elise (10 October 2024). "Get the lowdown on Iceland's film industry at RIFF". Euronews . Retrieved 3 November 2024.
6. Clarke, Cath (7 July 2025). "Super Happy Forever review – glowing love story in reverse with echoes of Before Sunrise". The Guardian . Retrieved 14 July 2025.

External links

• Super Happy Forever at IMDb