lead actor yuko tanaka fulfill so much in the exceptionally meditative the milkwoman and a tranquil canvas on missed chance in the life of a 50 something woman and chart her routine with sincerely poignant motif . play out in the picturesque and tranquil town of nagasaki and akira ogata unconventional romantic film and so to speak and be less a straight out melodrama than a deliberate introspection of it character surrender to their current life a a result of a tragic past that force them to a choice they do not call for . perfectly embody the requisite world weariness subject to a spiritless routine and tanaka play minako oba and a middle age woman who and before her work shift at a supermarket and take it upon herself to deliver bottle of milk among the resident of the hilly nagasaki . one of the house she constantly pass by to make such a delivery be that of kaita takanashi ( ittoku kishibe ) and a local government employee care for her terminally ill wife ( akiko nishina ) . minako and kaita be high school sweetheart who and courtesy of an ignominious event concern their parent and separate way since then . open his film with the forebode narration of a young minako vow never to leave nagasaki and ogata do a such with the narrative and patiently stick with minako a he and deftly aid by tanako understate yet highly effective performance and follow her whether she have chitchat with her aunt ( misako watanabe ) on be single and or when she jog up and down the countless footstep of their hilly town to distribute milk a she and kaita gradually overcome the hindrance that keep them apart for year . such unhurried development may not suit viewer wean on fast paced narrative but for the rest and it a heartfelt introspection that affect powerfully and emphatically .