This 5th Takumi-kun film is probably my favorite out of all them so far. Daisuke and Hamao feel more realistic and comfortable with each other than they ever have, and it makes the movie much more pleasant to watch as you can feel the emotions they are giving off. Their acting may not be the best to ever feature in Japanese media, but this time around I think they've hit their peak.

It's the same old Takumi you love, only this time it was a little more fleshed out. It seems like the same old Takumi problems, but for some reason it was much more interesting to watch. The music was, as always, wonderful and well used at appropriate times.

The story wasn't the best this time around but Daisuke and Hamao's acting really did make up for it, in my opinion.

The one thing that always bothered me in this series, this one included, are the flashbacks. They are oftentimes refilmed and rarely are you given any clue that what you are watching is a flashback. They could definitely execute them much better.

Other than that, I will greatly miss Daisuke and Hamao in this series! They certainly grew from the 2nd to 5th movies and you can see it for yourselves in this great film.

Read More

This is a drama I recommend to all those in search of a decent psychological/suspense drama with an air of mystery. It was strange and confusing to me at first, but that only made me want to continue. It's a short watch, so it's something you can complete in a day. I wouldn't say its easy or relaxing, but it sucks you into the story with various unanswered questions through each passing episode that will urge you on to the next one.

That aside, I didn't feel like this was complete by the end. I think the drama was too short for its story, which by itself was very good, but it needed much more time to achieve its potential. Because the story is neither plain nor simple, it needed room to grow and flesh out all of its intricacies that were there originally, but never really expanded upon.

The casting was perfect. I felt every actor lived up to their characters, however again going back to the time constraint I don't feel like I really got as attached and invested in them as I should have. I feel this way especially with Kuma-chan, who was such a fantastic character (superbly represented by Chiba Yudai, who really showed off his acting skill here), but got barely any screen time. The moments we got with him were some of the best, however.

The music sometimes felt like it ebbed into spots awkwardly, and sometimes it felt like it was missing. To be honest, the only time I really paid any attention to it was when one of the characters were singing, because it was a part of them and their dialogue.

I did enjoy this, however. Someday I may rewatch it, because it really was very interesting and I loved all of the characters, but it won't be for quite a while I think. Knowing all of the twists takes something out of the viewing experience. If you have some time, I recommend giving it a try.

Read More

First off, I'd like to just say that the summary does not do this drama justice. This isn't simply a cliché mystery drama the likes of all the rest. While the pacing is drawn out for the short 9 episodes, I never once felt like it was too slow or boring in any way.

Story:

I give the story a solid 8.5 or 9. It wasn't overly complex or mindblowing, however the writing was wonderful and full of emotion that most dramas neglect or don't bring out. I believe that the main focus in this show was to delve into the more psychological and highlight the relationships between people, and while yes there is some mystery, it wasn't very difficult to figure anything out. More important than solving the mystery was understanding why or what brought the people to this point. Especially important was the relationship between Sakaki and Torii--a friendship so beautiful I felt myself moved on several occasions, something very rare for me.

Acting:

The acting, in my opinion, was rather well done. While I've seen Inoue Masahiro before and therefore had a good idea of what to expect, I'd not had the experience of watching Akutsu Shintaro act before. I can definitely say I was impressed by how he portrayed Torii. The awkward movements, the interactions with Sakaki VS. everyone else, and his general appearance were all very believable and made me want to see even more from him.

Music:

It's difficult to say how good the music was based on the quality alone. However, it absolutely served its purpose. During the narrative scenes, it really increased the impact of the words and made me feel more strongly what was being said or spoken about. Instead of getting lost in the background or distracting from the beautiful script, it enhanced it. I really enjoyed it.

Rewatch:

Maybe in future I will rewatch this, though I don't think the impact will be as strong the second time around. However, simply to see Sakaki and Torii together again, I think I would definitely come back to this someday.


Overall I highly recommend this to most viewers. If you are a big mystery buff, I don't think this will be the best drama for you (the mysteries themselves aren't all that complex), but if you want to watch something quick and simple that isn't about all the usual drama tropes with a decent psychological theme, I would highly encourage all to give it a try.

Read More

It actually boggles my mind that 'psychological' isn't one of the listed genres for this drama, because for me it hit that above any other genre. I want to say right off the bat that this is by no means an easy drama to watch. It's quite heavy, it's not always fast paced, and there are quite a few long-winded speeches (especially by the end). However, this drama really does a fantastic job of evaluating the mind of a character, and watching him as he interacts with the world and begins to change.

I saw a lot of people from various places trying to compare this to Death Note, and it is my opinion that if you do that, you will only be disappointed. This isn't a story about some murderer going on a killing spree, it's far more complex than that. That being said, it is quite an amazing story, drawing beautiful parallels between Miroku and his own fictional novel.

The acting from Kora Kengo was top notch. Even if he hadn't been the main character he would have stolen the show. He portrays Miroku's character with such raw emotion that at times I found myself leaning in to my screen, he absolutely absorbs you into the story. Whenever you feel like its gotten slow, Kengo is able to keep you hooked with Miroku. The supporting cast did a fantastic job as well. At some point, you will likely find yourself despising at least one of the characters, and to me, that is the mark of a well developed character.

The music served its purpose, certainly. It always had me getting into the mood of whatever was on screen, though I honestly can't say I paid attention to it the entire time--I was far too absorbed in the story to notice it on some occasions. But this is also not a bad thing.

I don't know how soon I can rewatch this, since it is a really heavy drama and it requires patience and a certain kind of mood, however I liked it so much that I don't doubt I will one day come back to it. That aside, it's only six episodes long. The length per episode makes up for it though, and for once, I found the low episode count to be satisfying. It gives you plenty of time to understand the story, the characters, and everything is tied up successfully. I never felt like it was going by too quickly.

Overall, this was a very interesting drama. It's mostly a character study in my opinion, so you should expect some heavy psychological themes and topics. It's quite dark, lacking in humor and it's definitely not romantic, so if that's right up your alley then I would highly recommend this drama.

Read More