Rated 4.5/5: “Simply the Best Movie of 2025 Just Released!”

“Summer Garden (The Friends),” directed by the late Shinji Sōmai in 1994 and released for the first time in French cinemas last Wednesday in a restored version, is a dramatic and poetic comedy about the bond between three children and an elderly person. The film has been very well received by critics, boasting an average rating of 4.5 out of 5. Currently, it is the top film of 2025, surpassing “The Brutalist” which scored 4.3 out of 5.

What’s it about?

During their summer vacation in a swelteringly hot Kobe, three young friends craving adventure begin to ponder death and gradually become fascinated by the neglected garden of a reclusive old man. They decide to restore his rundown house. Gradually, the three boys and the old man form a friendship, making the summer garden their playground for an unforgettable summer.

Critical Reception:

According to Le Monde:

“A reservoir of souls, a source of wonder, it is from here that the film’s final poetic surge springs, placing it, just in time, under the auspices of a fairy tale. These are the tales that, from the realms of childhood, teach us to tame death.” By Ma. Mt. – 5/5

According to So Film:

“Every gesture seems captured in its truest momentum, thanks to a miraculous direction of the young actors akin to Kore-eda, as if the filmmaker had merged into their summer. ‘Summer Garden’ is as much an ode to the carefree spirit of youth as it is to the wisdom of the elders.” By Adrien Roche – 5/5

According to Libération:

“In a splendidly restored 4K film, more than thirty years after its release, the unjustly overlooked Japanese filmmaker delicately probes the morbid curiosity of three kids.” By Nathalie Dray – 5/5

According to Critikat.com:

“The beauty of ‘Summer Garden’ lies in its way of never opposing the imaginary to the real, but rather using it as the vector for an exploration through which the children encounter the materiality of the world.” By Robin Vaz – 4/5

According to Le Point:

“A delicate, poetic, and luminous work.” By The Editorial Team – 4/5

According to Les Fiches du Cinéma:

“Sōmai films with enchanting lightness and wild colors the simple, serious, and joyful story of three adventurous kids, a taciturn old man, and butterflies that come back to life.” By Gaël Reyre – 4/5

According to Télérama:

“At once exhilarating, whimsical, and profoundly melancholic, this ‘Summer Garden’ blooms on the subtle lands close to the cinema of a more famous compatriot in our regions, Hirokazu Kore-eda, another master of childhood.” By Cécile Mury – 4/5

According to Première:

“What results is an initiatory tale of radiant poetry, poignant but never tearful, about these kids’ acceptance of death, who will never forget this enchanted summer interlude.” By Thierry Chèze – 4/5