Mischievous Kiss the Movie: High School (2016)

With a super long wait for the english subtitles, I still couldn't find this movie with translations, so I gave it my best shot to watch it in the original, Japanese language. I've watched a ton of anime so understanding Japanese is quite simple actually. Speaking of anime, Itazura na Kiss was one of the first romance anime that I head over heels fell in love with. It is that good of a story that I've re-watched it about 5 times, read the manga and watched the Thai and Japanese drama adaptations. Seeing the trailer for this movie and hearing about its' release seriously made my year so much better!

First of all, let's just appreciate the fact that they're making 2 more movies with the same director and actors. The story was actually never finished due to the author of the manga passing away while writing it. That's why there is an opportunity of the directors and writers to add their own little twist to the story. I loved that this movie was actually very close to the anime, all of the principal parts were kept in and squeezed into a one great film.

Second, what I adored the most were the actors and how wisely they were chosen. I mean, the actors of Irie and Kotoko looked like they were taken straight out of the manga, their resemblance is uncanny. The acting was spot on as well. The mom's character got me just like in every other adaptation, she'll forever be my true spirit animal of shipping couples :D

Overall, this movie is definitely worth a watch for the biggest and true fans of Mischievous Kiss and for those, who are looking for a sweet and typical Japanese rom-com movie. Can't wait for the upcoming sequels! Let's hope they'll be subbed faster!

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This movie was exactly like the relationship between the girl and the boy: it's obnoxious, a little idiotic, kind of nerve wracking, but in the end, like the guy said, it's really difficult to get over it. The story is a been far stretched, as the girl, who is in the less clever class of her school, has to move in with the top student of the school, after her house collapsed like a house of cards. The twist here is that the girl was in love with the boy for years, but, after confessing to him, she was rejected very rudely. The girl simply annoys the guy and there is no indication that he even likes her. But, the ending just takes the most clever twist ever to let you anticipate for the second film. So, 4 out of 10, because the film makers could have tried to presented the facts better than just leave them look like a cheep comedy rather than a manga movie. Plus, the chemistry between the two were lacking, even though their performances were really good.

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I'm not a fan of the original Itazura na Kiss anime, but after falling in love with Mischievous Kiss: Love in Tokyo, I found myself getting attached to the story and the characters. The second I found out there was a movie version, I dove right into it.

That being said, while this movie made me feel happy in a nostalgic way, I was seriously disappointed by it. The cast members only have have the charm that the drama cast members had. Reina Visa as Kotoko has the looks and the voice, but she didn't have the same whimsy that Miki Honoka did in the drama. Sato Kanta made a fine, brooding Irie, but of course couldn't surpass my ultimate crush, Yuki Furukawa. I was most disappointed by Ishida Hikari as Irie's mother. She was cute and fun, definitely, but her spirit didn't match Nishimura Tomomi's from the drama.

Now, if you're going into this for the story, Mischievous Kiss the Movie: High School does closely follow the events of Mischievous Kiss: Love in Tokyo 1. Of course, a few scenes had to be altered, and a certain major scene was cut out, but for the most part, this stayed true to the drama version.

Overall, if I'm looking for a Mischievous Kiss kick, I'd find myself going back to the drama rather than this one. It was fun getting back into the story, though. Kudos to the cast for trying their best!

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This is surprisingly cute.

The leads were both young enough to make the characters of Kotoko and Naoki work. Their chemistry was cute, nothing over the top, and I really liked Reina Asaki's slightly more restrained approach to her portrayal of Kotoko. Kanta Sato is a warmer Naoki in that he can actually emote and the audience sees him being more expressive when Kotoko isn't looking. It makes him much more relatable.

I've developed a serious dislike of the tsundere ML, so I wasn't expecting much from this film. So to come out of it even remotely neutral, let alone with a positive impression of the story and the characters, was a real surprise. I've never read the manga so I have no idea how accurate it is. And since I have no intention of reading the manga, accuracy really doesn't matter to me. All I know is that the performances by Kanta Sato and Reina Asaki were much more to my tastes than Yuuki Furukawa and Honoka Yahagi in the "Itazura na Kiss" drama franchise. The only actor I wish that I could have switched out in the film was Kinn-chan. I adored Yuki Yamada in the drama series and so the Kinn-chan in the film felt bland. But that's probably more me being a Yuki Yamada fan than anything else.

The casting choices for Naoki and Kotoko's families were excellent. I love the dads, and I did love them in the drama series too. Their friendship is just very fun. Naoki's mother had less time to annoy me in the film than in the drama series, so go her. Plus, she seems less affected in the movie than she was in the drama. I do wish we'd had a chance to see Kotoko's father's restaurant since that's sort of a big thing. Maybe in the next film, which I will be watching asap.

I'd say that if you're not keen on the drama series, but would like to find a version of the story that works for you, then maybe try the movies. They're still utterly ridiculous, but in a good way, the way you're expecting. And the fact that I came out of the film not hating Naoki means that Kanta Sato did his job well. And thank goodness Reina Asaki's Kotoko wasn't so stupidly absurd. It's definitely on my rewatch list, like "One Week Friends," "My Little Monster," and "High School Debut." There's just enough sparkle to make "Mischievous Kiss The Movie: High School" something cute and memorable.

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