More than a love story
This was a rollercoaster of a ride!This film had a similar tone to Kimi No Na Wa minus the scifi element. The film's pacing started real fast but gradually became consistent and took its time building and developing the characters.
I loved the film for exploring each characters life journeys. It did not hesitate to show realistic obstacles of children and adults within society. The raw emotions and music played a huge role in bringing a strong, lasting impact on the story. I also appreciated when the film gives a clear backstory and glimpses between the characters.
The chemistry was clearly present between both Komatsu and Suda's performance. The supporting cast nailed their roles and left some strong, lasting moments.
I was surprised the casting director managed to find a child actress resembling Komatsu-san (or it could be make-up).
The story could be rather depressing due to it taking an authentic approach and long duration, which affected my rewatch value. Despite that, I still found the film to be quite inspiring and informative.
If you are interested in a film which explores the themes of self-discovery and gradual slow romantic build up, then I would recommend this film.
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The movie was Explorative, but the plot seems displaced
The story concept was actually good, it raises issues of daily living (such as trust and betrayal, domestic violence) beside focusing on romance, and has potentially interesting characters (nail artists, cheese maker, widow)But regretfully, the plot aren't so nice, too much screentime are wasted for unnecessary scenes, repetitions and flashbacks. On the contrary, scene's that are required to make the plot tie together are missing, hence the overall movie felt displaced and aren't flowing smoothly
The characters and chemistry between them doesn't seem to develop enough, the romance wasn't there. It seems like the movie only focus on the ending and not the process
Perhaps if the movie has more screen time (or was made into drama series), it could have been developed into a better work of art
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This review may contain spoilers
Need to be overrated
I dived into this movie expecting not much but came back with a lot . Truly mesmerised by the quality of acting in this movie even the supporting charachters deserve a praise . Its a rollercoaster of emotions from the start t the end every scene is cinematographically beautiful . Suda as Ren is filled with passion and Nana as Aoi is a strong willed women filled with hope . That hope of finding a home that has not yet found she strifles through life . Storyline is beautiful ,direction is nice . Music plays a key role the lyrics pierce through your heart when Aoi is crying while earing alone , the lyrics just resonate too much with jer situation that you want to yell at her to please cry your heart out . A wonderful story plss watch i firmly belive you will love it .Was this review helpful to you?
Like opening a lot of time capsules from 20 years of their lives
This is hard to rate because it really depends on what you want from it. I wanted nothing in particular as I knew nothing but who the leads were from the poster… I loved my couple of hours with them because it really fit my wandering/daydreamy mind that was fine just quietly observing while curled up with a ball of fluff.This is a slice of life… we are getting a moving image selection of time capsules of these characters’ lives, and where they are and who they are with in that moment is all you are getting, not some huge plot of what ifs, just a beautiful depiction of how the choices of each person at every stage made them grow, change, and all the same keep looking back and letting their hearts linger at a time long past. The child actress was an astonishingly good match, something I didn’t realize until I kept seeing them back and forth. She was also just plain good at connecting to this story in that quiet, nuanced way I see depicted in a lot of Japanese art. Minimalist in some ways, sure, but more like precision, a lack of clutter in what is shown so you see precisely what you should.
What you see? Beautiful cinematography, truly. The parts that are a bit more raw like the early months working in a cheese factory for the ML feel entirely intentional. When things are more harmonious, it is very clearly meant to convey the state of mind/level of comfort and peace in that singular moment. Everywhere is thoughtfully decorated, and this one warm older woman kept giving me Kim Hye Ja feels and I wanted her to feed me, too. Even the food, while only a few moments of it were shown, was really tender…
It is, from my viewing, about finding your home (your soul’s home in particular) and healing from things that made you run from even your happiest moments. The connections are not some pretty, perfect picture. They are realistic. The leads are understated in their expressions much of the time, her more than him, but their faces show pretty clearly how they are processing their emotions… you could probably turn off subs for 80% of this and still get 90% of what is said… ah, the music is also truly good, well-fitting for this film (which is actually “adapted from a song” which sure isn’t a tag I will see much, is it?). There is a bit of a shortcoming in the story itself a few places, mostly approaching the end, and I don’t love time skip endings in general (well, I particularly don’t like these barely there time skip endings… like why not show more between the ferry fireworks end of era capsule and the final one? I feel slightly, well, slighted there. Sure, it definitely works this way, but some things, even done well, make you ask “coulllldn’t you? We would be soooo happy to see this process after so many others were shown in such detail!” Alas, they jumped ahead in a way that felt a little disjointed and peculiar after the rest was so detailed in making sure the moments would linger…
I really found myself appreciating the hair and makeup stylists here!! They found the right ways to make time pass and make them seem definitely older, and that really helped in times when things were not going as desired. It was convincing, and they carried themselves in a way that matched the visuals the team crafted through makeup and hairstyles. The supporting cast were all just excellent, too.
So that is the spoiler free (slice of life doesn’t really have a ton of spoilers) reaction for this thread of fate being entwined, tangled, snapping, tied back together, etc. for every person in this whole film… the emotions are not loudly expressed very often, but they are palpable. Just know it feels a bit like an art film that is more about impressions left than any particular plot being carried out (almost 20 years of time are covered, so lots of small plot moments make the impressions, but they don’t directly connect in a linear fashion; rather, they culminate). It is reflective and has some flashbacks that some may not love. I would not want to watch this if my mind was busy/distracted. It is something to just immerse your eyes in and soak up, to feel as you observe… I didn’t find myself thinking about any what ifs at all. I just rode its wave which was gentle enough to sweep me here and there without making me drown in any place or lose my balance. The simple words “Are you okay?” becoming a grounding force for someone in a bit of a bad place is one of its most lovely details… those tiny words can make someone feel able to breathe again, able to smile. Okay, doesn’t hurt if the other is adorable and adoring.
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life goes on
The red string of fate concept makes another comeback in this movie. This movie felt more than the typical coming of age movie, it addressed the reality of how some people come and go in our lives. Things in our life don't pan out the way we wish oftentimes, and things such as right person wrong time is what makes life life. Both actors are great, I love Nana Komatsu and Suda Masaki is equally talented and charismatic of an actor. The fact that both of them have been married for a while makes the movie even more satisfying to watch haha.I did end up crying a few times here and there throughout the film, there are some scenes where it's just so beautiful, heartbreaking, and realistic at the same time. Most parts of the film are just really cinematically pleasing and calming. A lot of the camerawork showed wide landscape pans, and I noticed they often match what Nana wears to the landscape, which makes everything even more intentional and beautiful. I'd recommend this movie to everyone who loves a good slice of life movie that isn't afraid to show the process of life and growth.
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