Touch

by Mike McGranaghan

Baltasar Kormákur is best known for directing action movies like Beast, Contraband, and 2 Guns. It therefore comes as a huge surprise that his latest effort, Touch, is one of the most genuinely romantic movies of the past few years. Not romantic in that lightweight Anyone But You way. No, it’s romantic in a deep, human way that you can feel in your soul.

Based on the novel by Ólafur Ólafsson, the story revolves around Kristopher (Egill Ólafsson), a widower who is in the early stages of dementia. Realizing there isn’t a lot of time left before his memories are gone completely, he leaves Iceland and ventures to London, hoping to find his lost love. Flashbacks build up the story of how young Kristopher (Pálmi Kormákur, the director’s son) dropped out of school, got a job washing dishes at a Japanese restaurant, and fell in love with the owner’s daughter, Miko (Kōki).

The cool thing about Touch is that it builds suspense in two directions simultaneously. We watch old Kristopher trying to find Miko and wondering if he’ll succeed, what her reaction will be if he does, and so on. We also wait with nervous anticipation to learn why the two were separated decades ago. The film cuts back and forth beautifully, tying its halves together in a way that builds captivating momentum. Additional emotion comes from the incorporation of Hiroshima into the plot. That brings extra weight to the Kristopher/Miko dynamic.

Having two different actors play the same character years apart comes with a risk. If they bring their own mannerisms, it can make it difficult to believe they’re both supposed to be the same person. That doesn’t happen here. Ólafsson and Kormákur both invest Kristopher with a sensitive, soft-spoken nature. Their performances mirror each other perfectly. Ólafsson, in particular, does lovely work, conveying the man’s impassioned desire to find Miko and make things right before it's too late.

Touch takes place during the first days of the Covid-19 pandemic. Old Kristopher has to wear masks in public and do elbow bumps with people he meets, including a Japanese widower named Kutaragi-san (Masatoshi Nakamura) whom he befriends. The title therefore works on a couple of levels. He’s ironically looking for the woman who touched his heart during a period where physically touching others is verboten. That emphasizes the theme of seeking connection at the movie’s core.

Without spoiling anything, the ending manages to be heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. Touch understands that love can be a complicated thing, affected positively or negatively by time, place, and circumstance. But it can also transcend those factors, shaping our lives indelibly. How many screen romances can make that claim? Not many by my estimation, and that’s a big reason why this film is so special.

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