Hikaru Toda’s affecting, eye-opening debut documentary highlights the groundbreaking human-rights work done by the country’s first and only LGBT law firm, revealing a hidden side of Japanese society.
Gentle yet authoritative in its approach, Of Love and Law follows Fumi and Kazu, two openly gay lawyers and modern-day heroes who run a law firm in downtown Osaka and have been together for 15 years. In a country where their partnership has no legal recognition, it hasn’t always been easy gaining acceptance; but this astonishingly dedicated pair isn’t afraid to champion civil liberties despite the odds against them.
The cases that they take on tell an illuminating, sometimes shattering story about a country where departures from often restrictive norms can lead to prosecution by law and alienation from society at large. However, through the lives and hard work of Fumi and Kazu, we luckily get to see a snapshot of a Japan in transition towards something new.
