As ridiculous as the title may sound, this drama is......just that. The story plot is neither complex nor is it thought provoking.
I never really pondered if the actors were either doing a good or a bad job at portraying their characters due to the fact that the whole movie is so unrealistic and idiotic. It's not like they were playing deep roles so their acting abilities were not really challenged. However, their intentions were emphasized from their dramatic facial expressions so I'm just going to suggest that anyone watching this movie shouldn't expect some Academy Award winning performance.
Overall, the movie is surprisingly good. It may be shallow, but it's silly and sweet, almost like a greaser gang parody. Because there's no bad after taste, I think it's a good choice for anyone looking for a funny action movie that will do nothing more than entertain them. Be-bop High School is one of those comedy movies you like just because it's fun.
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Probably one of the best anime-turned-dramas out there, everything from the cast to the comedy is nearly perfect. This drama could have easily missed the mark with such an absurd story plot and it would have been very understandable because it’s not easy to portray such outlandish characters. Surprisingly, this was not the case. Not just in their visuals but in their manner of being, everyone was very appropriate for their characters, I could almost feel the actors’ teamwork to really bring the story to life.
Something that I really liked about the drama that was not very clear in the anime was the way the creators were able to really focus on the character’s back stories (except for the kappa leader and Nino who remain a mystery just like in the original story). I can only speak for the first season of the anime, but there is a lack of clear emphasis on the human side to them. Most of the time they seem to be completely outer-worldly with their ridiculous mindset, yet the drama adaptation was able to successfully present them as the misunderstood and socially challenged individuals who were able to create their own reality and accept each other as best as they can.
This could be said about any drama ever created, but Arakwa Under the Bridge may not be for everyone. The comedy is very different, some of it may be irrelevant to non-Japanese or even completely go over your head if you’re not very familiar with the culture. It’s not a very long series, 10 episodes of about 25 minute each, so I do believe it’s worth giving it a try. It’s unique, and hilarious, it’s definitely nothing like you've ever seen before.
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