K-Drama 
Classic coming-of-age high school drama that still shines nearly 20 years after release!
The first time I watched this drama was when it was first released in 2005, and what led me to it back then was that I was a huge fangirl of the male leads. Nearly two decades on now, having appeared in nice HD quality on my Netflix, I decided to give it a rewatch and I'm so glad that I still found it so enjoyable, even through "more seasoned" (as in, older) and less biased lens. I have to say though, upon completing the rewatch, a light in this former fan has been reignited...The story arcs in this drama encapsulate the growing pains and challenges in navigating social life in school, including sensitive issues, in thoughtful and eye-opening ways that are just short of being incisive, which I found refreshing in the midst of more recent high school dramas which tend to really amp up the discomfort when portraying such issues. In Nobuta wo Produce (NwP from here on), they are explored just enough to get a clear message across. Then the events come full circle back around which is especially rewarding as you follow the characters' growth journey. This is particularly apparent in the ending, the entire drama wraps up nicely. The insertion of comic relief adequately balances out scenes that could have turned out darker/heavier otherwise, and they preserve an overarching message that a certain teacher ♡ affirms repeatedly. On that note, the adults are also great -- Delphine and the Truth Man!
The chemistry between the leads in NwP, as well as among the wider circle of schoolmates, is also worthy of praise. I realise now that the personalities of the main characters are in fact quite difficult to portray on camera, but the actors/actress delivered strong, nuanced performances. Kamenashi's slight changes in his facial expressions, Yamashita's irreverently quirky mannerisms, the changes in Horikita's body language and aura as time passed. Honestly, it's impressive considering they were still budding actors at the time, and the boys were originally Jpop idols. Kamenashi deservedly won an award for this role.
Kudos are also due to the direction and story/screenwriting definitely, as without such strong support, the delivery wouldn't have been what we see on screen now. The background music tracks are also befitting the various moods of the scenes and although the composition is quite dated by now, breathes a charming, low-key retro vibe to the show and syncs well with the colourful characters (including the adults!). The lack of filter in the visuals and choice of rustic high school setting are also quite refreshing among recent dramas that apply various filtered styles for a more polished, cinematic finish. The resulting rawness in NwP somehow paints a better picture of the "spirit of youth" and all the more relatable to my own memories of school life.
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This review may contain spoilers
Everything is good except the story... which is so bad !
I have read many reviews telling "this is a great story about friendship and growing up" but I strongly disagree!For Western viewers, this drama can be frustrating. It heavily follows the Japanese school of cinema dramatic concept of "gaman" which means, suffering in silence, abandoning one's love for the sake of friendship and for the group's harmony and peace. Just that this concept is applied in such an exaggerated way, broken on multiple occasions, especially in the end.
All characters forfeit their love stories for he sake of a great, great "friendship triangle".
The main problem is that this is utterly destroyed in the last episode when Suuji decides to leave. This makes no sense. It is clearly shown that his father allows him to remain behind in a boarding house. However, Shuuji comes with a very, very weak excuse "I need to be near my brother to make sure he gets dinner when Father comes home late". For this, he ABANDONS his fantastically close friends Akira and Nobuta, his love and everything he worked for. Who could believe this?
Then comes Akira's decision. He is in love with Nobuta, Suuji has just left, he has his chance with Nobuta. What does he do? He Abandons Nobuta, going after Suuji (in a Helicopter no less!). No wonder many viewers have written alternate endings in which Suuji and Akira are in fact a gay couple. This would make much more sense than the official ending.
All love stories in the movie are inconsistent. In the beginning Shuuji tells Nobuta "Mariko is not my girlfriend" signaling he may date Nobuta in the future. Next, there is an important moment when Nobuta is about to confess her love in public, and it is revealed Shuuji intends to answer positively by dumping flowers on her head. So all the premises are there. But they choose to completely forsake their feelings for the sake of Akira's friendship who "happens", later in the show, to realize he is also in love with Nobuta. Even if it happens later. Even if, in the first episodes, Akira and Shuuji do not seem really such good friends.
Also, Shuuji and Mariko. The way he dumps her is at least dubious. Because in the last episode, when they have a final date, he admits he likes her. It doesn't make much sense except for the made-up reason hat he HAD TO pretend to date her in order to be "popular". This sound 100% cinema and 0% reality.
The girl who is a sworn enemy of Nobuta (I forgo her name) is also unbelievable. She apparently has unlimited power, like a Ninja, to observe and affect everything Nobuta does, being completely invisible. Yet the reasons for hating Nobuta so much are just not there. It is another substory not well written.
All in all, I enjoy Japanese movies and how they feel so unreal, partly because of how they look and talk and behave, and partly because of these unbelievable stories, and I didn't hate this movie. But I don't agree that his is a film about "growing up". Nobuta does grow up and she is definitely a better person in he end. But the 2 boys Akira and Shuuji... no way ! And I cannot stand by so many inconsistencies and so many writer's decisions which are the opposite of what should really happen.
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This review may contain spoilers
i don't understand what people saw in han yori dango which made them ignore such a deep showeverything about this show is magical and subarashi!!
the show teaches you that life is shitty at times and you feel you wanna die but the one who remains happytill the end and remains till the end is the one who actually lived.
i loved how they showed the characters tried confront themselves and change a little by little but still not forget who they are
i heard the book was better but idk from what i heard in the book shuji never changes he keeps on being the fake shuji u know.Some people might like this concept but i don't as in the end u will be like everything went back to zero but it is a personal opinion .
well you could say in the end they showed that she was left behind was a bit weird but i guess for shuji to remain his real self akira needed to be by his side.
SO OVERALL I WOULD LIKE TO SAY ONE THING AND THAT IS JUST WATCH IT YOU MAY LEARN SOMETHING AND WOULD WANT TO LIVE U KNOW !!!
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L'adolescence se termine, il faut faire des choix, heureusement qu'il y a les amis...
Au premier abord, c’est un school drama basique, mais en fait c’est beaucoup plus fin que ça ! A travers le personnage de Shuji, son rapport avec les autres, l'image qu’il s’est créée délibérément, c’est toute la problématique de l’acceptation de soi qui est en jeu. Pourquoi se sent-il obligé de se cacher derrière ce garçon qui ne lui ressemble pas ? On dirait qu’il n’y a pas de choix entre être populaire à tout prix ou être harcelé ! C’est la tyrannie de l’image que l’on donne !C’est le contact avec Akira, dont les gestes sont peut-être maladroits, mais dont l’esprit est lucide et qui est un être libre, qui va l’amener à comprendre pourquoi il a fait ce choix. Akira a décidé qu’il était son ami, et il va le soutenir et l’aider à s’affranchir de ce masque. La « production » de Nobuta sera le moyen d’abord inconscient, puis accepté, pour Shuji, de devenir lui-même, qualités et défauts compris.
Les trois personnages se complètent parfaitement au long de ce drama aux dialogues bien écrits, souvent très drôles. Comme souvent chez les Japonais, il y a une pointe de fantastique, un zest de burlesque, et si j’ai aimé la fin par sentimentalité, j’aurais préféré que le drama s’arrête au départ de Shuji, symbole de son nouveau départ dans la vie, sans masque et sans mensonges… Mais, bon, les deux amis jouant dans les vagues à la toute fin, ça fait quand même plaisir ! Les acteurs sont très bons, ainsi que les seconds rôle (la principale bizarre et le libraire qui est aussi prêtre shintô sont deux éléments qui participent à l’ambiance particulière et chaleureuse de ce drama que j’ai revu récemment avec grand plaisir !
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Первый раз увидела Каменаши - ничего не скажу, играет он отлично. Уже третий раз попадается Ямашита, немного достал тут своей раздолбанностью, но мальчик хороший Ну и Маки то я знаю, она мне всегда нравилась. Так что трио получилось сплоченным.
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