This was the best Japanese romance production I have seen to date.
The acting was stunning. The fine skills exhibited by all the cast (also the support roles) was just brilliant.
Japanese productions tend to be either overly melodramatic or greatly exaggerated acting-wise. But this was neither.
It was just beautful from start till the end (and by that I mean the very end. The part after the credits...)
Story: Aki is the genius songwriter of CrudePlay, a band of highschool friends in which he formerly used to play. When he meets Riko, he wants her to like him as himself, not as the famous composer he is. So he lies. This is revealed when Riko is scouted by the same label. Will they overcome the obstacles of the industry and the rival from his own band?
Characters: I loved every single character in this drama. Aki, the tormented genious whos heart is slowly opening to the young and sweet Riko. Riko, the gentle singer who admires Aki as a composer and has a passion for singing. The chemistry between the leads was very real. I liked the way they interacted when the were on screen together.
Shou, the cool best friend. He's singer of CrudePlay and I think just as cool as Aki. His acting was very sophisticated, very detailed and perfectly portrayed the friendship between him and Aki. I think he is also my favourite character. And I am not (just) saying that out of 2nd lead bias. I just think he acting was so mesmerising.
And all the other loveable side characters.
Music: Well this is a music-themed film, so this only could be good, right? It's very light pop based. Not really catching, but definitely easy to listen to. I appreaciate that it is not one or 2 main songs that get repeated over and over like in many other dramas.
Rewatch Value: I don't rewatch much. But I may just rewatch this some time. You can probably pick up more details and emotions in this movie during a rewatch. You can look at the beautiful characters more closely and find new expressions that will make you like them even more.
Overall: I can highly recommend this drama to everyone who likes music-themed stories, a sublime romance, fantastic acting, loveable characters, and a magnificent story.
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Acting/Cast: Satou Takeru has already blown my mind multiple times--and he carried the team well in this film. Apparently this is the lead actress's first work ever, having beaten out 4,999 other applicants. I think she beat them with good reason. Her singing voice and acting didn't leave me asking for someone with better skills in either arena. With manga adaptations it's quite common to see good-looking but subpar actors and actresses cast in the lead roles just for higher viewership, so I'm extremely glad that didn't happen here. I'm the type that will avoid a work if it has an actor/actress in it I don't think acts well (since it'll also detract from the drama/movie itself), so I'm, again, extremely happy with the cast and the acting.
Music: As a movie about music, if the music was bad there'd be no point watching it, right? Right! The music and lyrics were great--and most importantly, fit the story and the atmosphere. Maybe not something I'd listen to on my iPod forever, but quality enough to keep the movie believable.
Rewatch Value: I don't like rewatching, but maybe I'll rewatch the cute and sweet parts. ><!
Overall, a must-watch for even a cynic like me. Manga adaptations or high school romances are usually quite...silly? Shallow? And I'm quite skeptical of them as a genre, but I was pleasantly surprised with this one, despite the fact that overall development was lacking due to their movie-length time constraint.
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First, the cast was good. I loved the leads (the girl was adorable!). The acting was nice and they had great chemistry. The problem was they didn't share enough scenes for me. I wanted their relationship to get more development. As it was, everything felt rushed and a little silly.
The plot is interesting enough. I get the pain associated with music and love, but it fell flat because everything was kind of slapped together. The music was nice though.
My number one problem with this movie is the ending. I hate endings that are nicely tied up, darnit! All in all, watch this if you're a fan of the manga or actors when you have the time. It's not a must see movie though. It's cute and a nice enough way to pass the time.
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The film did everything that the dorama fought for 16 episodes to achieve and he only has an hour and a few other minutes. I know that the dorama had more time to work with the characters (even the secondary ones), but this is the question: it didn’t have to.
The film focused on the main story and it went perfectly well and that is the power of a well written script. Despite having a huge love for the Korean actor Lee Hyun Woo, Sato Takeru's main character was so beautifully presented (and very well acted) that I fell in love much more for him and his reasons. He simply didn’t need 16 one-hour episodes of a drama to make me identify with his reasons and fall in love with him.
The only thing I prefer about the dorama is how the songs were put into it, while there was a void in the movie when the characters listened to important songs that showed how the main character felt. Of course they were presented, but if they had been put in the film to complement the character and not only to be part of the soundtrack the result would be more flawless. But P.S: The translation of the songs in the movie are more beautiful than the korean version.
Can’t wait to watch the sequel to this wonderful movie! I want to enjoy Aki for much longer! Please watch it!
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Story | Aki, a producer for the famous band Crude Play, was once a set member but near their debut decides to back away and let someone else take his place. While out humming his new song, Riko, who herself has a very unique voice, hears his hums and it drowned to him. From there the two's love story begins. Honestly, the plot given on this site didn't really draw me in to where I had to watch it right away. But the simple story was filmed perfectly! It's also nice that the story is not as big of a cliché.
Cast | SATO TAKERU. That's all I need to see and I'll watch it or add it to my list. He gave Aki such a feel that made it his own. I honestly cannot describe why I thought his acting was spot on. His attitude gave off a certain anti social feel but his eyes told a different story and that is why I love his acting so much. Sakurako Ohara was a pleasant surprise. I expected something…clingy and over dramatized moments from her acting and it was far that and I was extremely happy. Her chemistry with Sato was really nice too. The age gap (in the movie) was pretty nonexistent to me and again, I am happy that wasn't on my mind during the movie. The supporting cast wasn't able to show more of their character I feel, obviously because it was a movie but I enjoyed those casted.
Music | BEST. MOVIE. SOUNDTRACK. EVER. I may have a slight biased opinion on music especially when it comes to jrock sounding music (Crude Play) but the music that was made for this movie was amazing. I had to go download it right after finishing!
Rewatch | Definitely. I recommended this to my sister and will probably rewatch this over her shoulder.
Overall | The simplicity of this movie is what made it so great to me. The story flowed perfectly, the acting was great, there was no unnecessary dragged on moments and even though I feel some characters/side story lines were kind of pushed into a closet, I fully enjoyed this movie. I also love that even though this was based off a Shoujo manga, it didn't even feel like I was watching a live action of a manga. There was enough romance but not overly done and it was a joy to watch. ALSO! Watch the movie until the very end! Wait through the credits!
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Wow. I love it! It's not a very original story, but the way it was directed and acted gave it a very unique quality, which I find engrossing when it comes to watching a film with similar adaptations (for example, all the South Korean movies about North Korean spies...)
Story: Like I said, it's unique in the way that the story is told, and not quite the actual story itself. Some additions that made it seem more like a drama rather than a movie, a few dropped plot points, a bit of noble idiocy, but the way it was written made it seem natural.
Characters/Acting: Spot on. You understood Aki's anti-social introvertedness, and slowly see him open up after Riko comes into the picture. He needed someone bright and optimistic like Riko to raise him out of his funk, and he quickly fell for her. Age is just a number here, and I really love how the age difference between the main leads wasn't addressed, like at all. The secondary characters, like Crude Play, were relatable. We didn't see much of Kaoru and Teppei, but I enjoyed the little screen time they had. Shun was the best friend Aki could ask for, always being supportive even though Aki's bad moments. Everyone needs a composed friend like Shun. The producer was a money-grubbing plankton and I didn't like him at all, but it made me think about the music I listen to, and consider the possibility that things work like that in the music industry.
Music: Well, it's a movie about music, so the songs have to be good! And they are! Easy listening more like, but it's a nice combination when Riko and Aki played and sang together. The lyrics were really moving as well.
Overall, it's a great love story with a beautiful but open-ended ending that leaves the watcher satisfied but also leaves them to imagine how the relationship proceeds from there. I highly recommend if you're in for an easy watch with precious kiss scenes.
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This review may contain spoilers
Surprised!!!!I am surprised that I love this movie the same as I'm surprised that that cute little body of sakurako produce voice like that what a great singer she is. This is a semi spoiler but I like the way they teased us at the beginning she was like about to sing but sato takeru stopped her, then when the time she finally sings OMG haha and that look at sato takeru says it all.
I love how japan do their romance films like this...they blend meaningful dialogue with such great cinematography and soothing background music. It was directed by the same guy who directed taiyou no uta movie(not the drama) so you'll notice it has that same indie-sh vibe (the way they shot scenes, the cinematography, the music etc.) but it was more mainstream than taiyou not uta maybe the producers have something to do with that.
The acting is ok too from sato takeru to kubota to sorimachi and sakurako is not bad for a first timer and she really nailed those dramatic parts. The chemistry is great too..not a phenomenal pairing but they are cute together and that character by sakurako will become one of my favorite cute clumsy girl character on tv/movie XD.
Even if you don't read the manga you will enjoy this one....you just need to love japanese music.
Check my Blog for other reviews & other JDramas stuffs. (｡◕‿‿◕｡)
https://thatjapanesedramaguy.blogspot.com/
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Fave character was definitely Shun (the actor had a total Ikuta Toma vibe to him!).
I read a little bit of the manga and i liked the story so i was looking forward to watch the movie adaptation.
I Loved all the songs and the music (Sakurako Ohara has a really good voice) The cinematography was just wow. The characters were played just right with all their depth and own stories, even the minor ones; the actors and actresses were great!
Sato Takeru has definitely won my heart and he was perfect in his role. The romance was really cute and pure and the story didn't disappoint. The ending was good.... but somehow didn't satisfy me ^^.
Recommended! ****
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At first I thought the concept of the story was far-fetched, and I was really hesitant to watch it because I was afraid of how heavy the romantic drama would be. However, this story was incredibly light-hearted and was really well written. There was a very abrupt transition in the story where "something bad happens" and it follows through with your typical drama angst that's unfortunately predictable but is somewhat saved by the acting between Sato Takeru and Sakurako Ohara. I also have to admit that I was quite disappointed in the ending-- especially the "alternative/extended ending" after the credits. I felt the ending was unsatisfying and sort of diminished the impact of the story as a whole. However, I'm not familiar with the original story to be able to give a full in-depth critique. And please don't let these negative comments deter you from watching the film, because everything leading up to the end is honestly really, really well done.
Acting/Cast:
The acting for all of the characters was fantastic and believable save for Kubota Masataka who felt like the typical trope anime-styled character that you see in most dramas. The other supporting roles were very well done. Sato Takeru once again astounded me with his passionate acting abilities. Sakurako Ohara's character, though incredibly naive, is far from annoying or boring. Sakurako manages to bring out a lot of emotional strength, and convincingly plays the part of a young genius in music. Not to mention that her voice is incredible! The chemistry between Sakurako and Sato is very well done and convincing for their characters.
Filming/Editing
I also have to give a lot of praise to the filming, directing and editing crew. Everything about this film was very high quality and beautifully filmed and edited. There were no inconsistencies and everything carried some level of significance right down to the coloured filters that were used in the editing process.
Music:
I really enjoyed the music that was created for the characters of the show as well as the supporting soundtrack. The soundtrack isn't particularity memorable, but that isn't the impact that it's trying to make. It properly supports and enhances the movie watching experience in its subtlety, and doesn't fight with the music that the characters play in the story.
Rewatch Value:
I will definitely be rewatching this movie again. However, I would probably skip the extended ending.
Overall:
Please watch this movie!! It's really good!!
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Note: For those who haven't watched the movie yet, you have to wait for the end credits to finish, so that you watch the final scene.
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