Little Forest: Summer/Autumn

Returning to Komori after heartbreak in the city, Ichiko trades traffic for silence and fields for familiar faces. The heat of summer presses on the town as she settles into its slow routine, baking bread in a sunlit kitchen and tending hothouse tomatoes that glow with ripeness. She learns to read the land again, moving through fields with a steady rhythm, savoring the soil and rain on her skin. As autumn arrives, the emphasis shifts to preservation and harvest rituals, picking fish and sweet potatoes, and finally tending rice in the fall light. Memories of the five years she spent away surface in quiet moments, shaping a gentle portrait of homecoming and renewal rather than escape.

This 2014 film directed by Junichi Mori adapts Daisuke Igarashi's manga, bringing the Summer and Autumn chapters to life with Ai Hashimoto as Ichiko. The film favors restrained, sensory realism and a close look at rural living and intimate moments.

Box office data for Little Forest: Summer/Autumn are not widely reported. The film appears to have had a limited release outside Japan and tends to attract viewers who seek intimate, art house cinema rather than mainstream box office success.

No major awards are listed for this film in major databases, suggesting it found its audience in film festivals and domestic screenings rather than winning widespread accolades. Its strength lies in craft, performances, and the intimate portrayal of seasonal life rather than trophy moments.

Critics and audiences respond to the film’s calm pace, naturalistic detail, and focus on resilience. The core themes include heartbreak and healing, a return to one’s roots, and the cycles of the seasons guiding personal growth. It relies on quiet observations and everyday acts that feel meaningful rather than dramatic. The imagery of seasons and meals lingers, inviting viewers to slow down with Ichiko's routine.