Kumamoto’s Five-month-long Hit Now Playing in Tokyo; “Boneless Lantern” Features Historical Hot Spring Town

By Yasuko Onda / Yomiuri Shimbun Senior Writer

11:15 JST, June 6, 2025

The film “Honenashi Toro” (“Boneless Lantern”), which recorded an exceptional five-month-long run at a small theater in Kumamoto last year, is now playing in Tokyo through June 22.

Nadeshiko Koba directed the film and lives in Yamaga, Kumamoto Prefecture. She independently filmed it along with her husband Tamio, who is the movie’s producer.

The plot revolves around a man who has lost his wife. Unable to overcome his grief, he wanders around the city with the box that holds her cremated bones. He gradually recovers thanks to funny and mysterious meetings with people.

Yamaga is a city full of hot springs that once thrived as a post station town along a major road in the Edo period (1603-1867). During that time, Daimyo feudal lords were required to stay in the then capital Edo every other year. Some of them often stayed at Yamaga while traveling to Edo.

Various scenes of the film closely depict the city’s culture and atmosphere. The most symbolic is the Yamaga lantern, a local traditional craft that the film takes its name from. The lantern is made using only traditional Japanese washi paper and glue. Its soft light in some ways symbolizes the man’s recovery. A summer festival shown in the film in which young women dance with these golden lanterns on their heads leaves an impression, along with the cheerful greetings of children.

Koba established her career as a screenwriter. She moved to Yamaga with Tamio in 2021. “Boneless Lantern” is Koba’s first feature as a director. She won awards at film festivals, such as Best First Time Filmmaker at the Toronto International Women Film Festival.

The movie played in cities including Kumamoto, Kobe and Nagoya before coming to Tokyo. Filmgoers can see it at the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum in Tokyo.

It plays with Japanese or English subtitles once a day each day of the week, with Chinese or French subtitles added on some days. The museum will be closed on June 9 and 16.