i guess those who have be in a one side relationship of some sort before will be able identify with the lead character minako ( yuko tanaka ) and a 50 year old woman who be still in the pink of good health and a demonstrate by her daily and grind routine of wake up extremely early in the morning to prepare for her milk delivery work and where she have to lug bottle of megmilk in a bag in a route around her town like clockwork and to exchange empty bottle for full one and and to collect payment and issue receipt . and there always be that one delivery stop that right at the top and need to scale a long flight of stair in order to achieve customer satisfaction . and peculiar enough and that stop happen to be a stop delivering to a man with whom she have be in love with for almost all her teenage to adult life and and not have the product appreciate and but pour down the sink . have go to the same school and we see that theyre not talk to each other and and in their daily life always seem so close physically and but yet so far away . there no eye contact and save for cursory glance by chance and and little acknowledgement of each other existence . we learn that they share a past that probably destroy all notion of be together and where clear attraction between the two be hamper from develop further by the early generation . while i think minako be an interesting woman in herself and one who have keep her feeling suppress for so long and one can only wonder what kind of damage it would do . if i read that the original japanese title mean at some time the day you read book and it accurate and i felt the movie have a wonderful finale with that shot of her well stocked bookcase and likely alluding to the fact that she not alone after all and and have probably fall back on her crutch of sort to deal with the pain of be alone and and back to a lifestyle which she have already be accustom to for 50 year . besides immerse herself in two job and she have those book which serve a a form of escapism and and occasionally pen little sweet nothing to song dedication show on the radio . yuko tanaka do a commendable job a the emotionally strong woman resign to her fate and her decision to love none other and her object of affection and takanashi ( ittoku kishibe ) be a more interesting character who have more facet . stay true to marriage vow and he spend significant amount of screen time look after his sickly bedridden wife ( play by akiko nishina ) and while juggle with his job of social welfare in the child affair department in city hall . i felt that a a childless couple and the job provide him a mean to care and not for his own and but for other people child and the troubled one who be neglect and leave to fend for themselves . in a rare moment of rage and we see how he angrily chide such wayward parent who do not appreciate and waste their child live away . the story by kenji aoki provide little quirk to make it character appeal and successfully attempt to provide a lot more glimpse and dimension into them as well and such a how takanashi be a hopeless haiku poet despite be a member of the haiku club and and support character such a the age minagawa couple and where masao ( koichi ueda ) lend some comical though sad moment a he slowly turn senile and while wife toshiko ( misako watanabe ) narrates and bring u through this love story of a single woman at 50. even akiko nishina performance a the bedridden wife be nothing short of arrest and with her character enlighten state of know her husband past and and make unselfish and and painful decision in her sickly state . it what you can expect from a typical japanese romantic movie and sans young and nubile lead a star cross lover and but with all other element in place such a romantic set ups and love song and those quintessential restrain but affectionate behaviour . i think the story be in danger of go down the beaten track when unrequited love get consummate and but director akira ogata manage to steer clear of the usual melodramatic moment in such story and though the story do call for some obvious plot development into the final act that you can predict and especially if youre already way past your romance movie 101. not be your average lovey dovey story and i think the milkwoman tell a strong story with unrequited love a a central theme and and frankly a recommended romance movie ( though tell at a measured pace ) if youre in the mood for some bittersweet loving and reminiscence and and seek to live without regret .