Hana Yori Dango (1995)

OK so Im sorry but i could only find the french subbed one so if you ask me where i found it can't really help you ...

Story: LOVED it ! well it's just the basic BOF, HYD or LGWMS story except in shorter and simpler, now you have to know that i'm the type of person that hates complicated dramas or movies that drag the story until the very last moment so which is just my luck cause that's like practically ALL Asian dramas -.-
But i do think they focused to much on the fact that she was being bullied when they could have gotten deeper into the love affairs :$

ACTING: WAS SO BAD ! but in a funny why so it was ok to watch seriously sometimes my fingers would curl ! OH and I HAVE to mention Domioji's HORRIFYING word rob times change and so does fashion so maybe his cloth to me seemed a little bit over? i don't know but just didn't feel the pants that are tight around the waist and the vests with nothing under...

MUSIC: Lol the music from my parents age like the 60's or something like that i actually like this type of music :) loved the last song had me "dancing" more like wiggling on my bed :D

RE-WATCH: DEFINITELY ! i had a blast watching this it was funny,cute, short, sometimes embarrassing (acting, weird but entertaining and interesting to see the original BOF where it all started :D

OVER ALL: 9 cause i feel that they didn't show enough love scenes and to much bulling :$

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As a fan of the huge, multi-cultural, franchise that is HYD adaptations, I had to watch the ancestor of them all. Made in 1995, you should be warned that this movie showcases some of the most hilarious outfits I’ve ever seen. I mean…Domyoji, if you’re so rich, why can’t you seem to afford a shirt to put under that hideous vest you wear everywhere? Anyway, if you can get past the 90s vibe (or appreciate it as added humor), this movie actually has a lot of positives. It takes the familiar story (in part at least) and manages to fit it into a movie without making the viewers feel overwhelmed. The acting was decent, if a bit over the top and it was really fun to see some Japanese stars back in their young days (Looking at you Tanihara Shosuke). It was entertaining, and for something I only turned on in order to say I had watched it before, turned out to be better than expectations.

(Review originally from my blog)

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This movie was bad. Not just kind of bad, but like, horrendously bad. The acting was bad, the music was bad, the fashion was bad. Pretty much every single thing about this movie was, you guessed it. Bad.

HOWEVER. I knew it was going to be bad going in, having read other reviews. I watched it anyway because it's Hana Yori Dango, after all. Word of advice, though to all my fellow HYD fans. Skip this movie. Read the manga, watch the anime, watch all the different dramas. Pretend this bit just doesn't exist, because it's an hour and twenty minutes of your life you can never get back.

That being said, I can at least say that it was hilarious. Stupidly, embarrassingly hilarious. I was literally either shaking my head or laughing out loud the entire movie at the absurdity. Also, FYI. Domyouji in a speedo. >_< There are no words.

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First, I'm going to preface this by saying: Only Hana Yori Dango fans will like this. Seriously. If you've never seen read the manga or seen any of the others versions, you'll probably hate this movie. Like many manga adaptations, the film is chiefly fan service. It was the first live-action version and I'm sure the draw was: Want to see adorable idol Yuki Uchida as Tsukushi? or hunky newcomer Naohito Fujiki as Rui? (though his hair makes him look too similar to Uchida...) So, please avoid this, if you unfamiliar with the story.

Now on to the story! The movie covers the first seven volumes (Fun fact: only nine volumes of the series had been released at the time). Unfortunately, this also means it covers some of least favorite parts of the manga, the Shizuka Arc and Rui Tries to Steal Domyoji's Girl Arc. I can forgive it though since they only had so much material to work with. My biggest complaint about the story is the rearranging of events (maybe only manga fans will notice), it makes some things not make any sense. And Tsukasa nearly assaults Tsukushi and it's all hunky dory, let's go to the beach time now?! (Atleast in the manga she is noticeably scared to be alone with Tsukasa for some time) That part really should have been left out, instead of Tsukushi and Tsukasa's first 'date'.

I'm not going to comment much on the acting. They were all newcomers at the time with many making their film debut in it. Honestly, the over-the-top acting kind of suits the manga vibes. On another note, the actors playing Akira and Sojiro aren't given hardly any lines! So sad. If you're interested check out the late Koichi Hashizume in Picnic (1996), he really shows off his acting chops in it. And did anyone else notice Shizuka's accent?

Lastly, my personal feelings on this movie. I waited a long time to watch it. It wasn't available online for years. Now it's conveniently located on YouTube. Since then, I've seen it atleast three or four times. I just never get tired of the wacky story and acting or the soundtrack, "Baby's Growing Up," or laughing at Tsukasa's missing shirt. Not the best version of Hana Yori Dango by far, but still entertaining. I recommend to veteran fans of the manga or the other adaptations.

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The story moves way too fast, the acting is over the top in the typical Japanese way, the clothes are horrendous...and I love this movie. It's just so campy and fun and unashamed (complete with a ridiculous musical number at the end). It has all the components of a typical Asian love story; jerky male lead, spunky female lead, secondary male lead you'll probably like better than the male lead, romantic tension, a makeover montage (!), and all in a short and easy to digest time frame!

What I'm trying to say is...this probably won't be the best movie you've ever seen. But you'll definitely have a lot of fun watching it.

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