Kore-eda was originally interested in the disciples of Aum Shinrikyo , which had committed the Tokyo subway sarin attack . He did not intend for the film to be a direct critique of these type of sects but rather that it would bring attention to everybody 's civic responsibility to stopping such attacks and " how each individual is directly related to or is responsible for a criminal act "
Tokyo subway sarin attack
Tokyo subway sarin attack
Distance (2001 film)