A young man spends hours a day on a bench, staring out at the sea. Another young man, employed nearby, finds himself spending hours staring at the first. Before long, the two go from strangers to much more in the new anime film “L'Etranger De La Plage.”
Set on an idyllic Okinawan island, “L'Etranger De La Plage” is centered on the blossoming romance between Mio (Yoshitsugu Matsuoka) and Shun (Taishi Murata), two young men whose feelings for each other, and for those around them, are complicated by some serious parental issues.
The sullen Mio, in high school when the story begins, is reeling over the recent death of his beloved mother, which has left him an orphan. But despite his surly, anti-social nature, there’s something about him that attracts Shun, an aspiring novelist who works and lives at a seaside restaurant and inn. After a few awkward early encounters, Mio and Shun end up connecting emotionally — but, soon thereafter, Mio declares his intention to move off the island.