See, I do play the guitar and the piano (and used to sing as well), but Linda Linda Linda is more of classic Japanese rock than my usual, or at least what I've grown up with. So I couldn't connect with that aspect. But I still absolutely love the simpleness of the film and the fact that it doesn't try too hard.
Nobuhiro Yamashita uses tracking shots as if to show the growth and progress of the characters. He also knows how to contrast them especially when all the four leads are in one frame. The cuts are long as if the camera just keeps rolling as they're all just acting naturally. That's Linda Linda Linda. Watching it just feel so...natural. So relaxing and at the same time, full of energy.
Bae Donna (who starred in many Hollywood films including Cloud Atlas) shows alienation well but not in the way that will make you pity her. She carries it in a simple natural yet. Aki Maeda, Yuu Kashii and Shiroki Sekine (bassist of Base Ball Bears, whose songs were part of the soundtrack) have such good chemistry on screen, each with their own unique personality that compliments each other.
Well, at least you have a lovely soundtrack to enjoy. Blue Heart's Linda Linda is going to give you Last Song Syndrome (just like it did for me).
Linda Linda Linda is a simple high school tale of friendship. (No drama, no heavy crying). So it doesn't need to be too much to be compelling. If you want something light and at the same time, fun, this is a good one.
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Surprisingly this movie was a very quiet one. After reading it's a movie about a rock band, I expected it to be more ..loud..I guess? But don't worry in the end you'll still get to hear some music!
Those four girls who are very different and don't seem like they would fit together, in the end make up a really good team. Each of them has their own struggles and each of them has a lovely personality. You get to discover more and more about them as they try to make their performance a perfect one, each of them working hard on their own. Still I'd say the story is more about getting together than accomplishing that one goal. Each of the girls were acting their part very well, especially our fun and quirky Korean girl, and even some of the supporting roles were adorkable.
I would say it's a slice of life themed movie, most of the time you feel like an observer to what's going on in this part of their life. It gets a little weird sometimes, but I love that Japanese weirdness. There are some scenes that just cracked me up, while others would probably think: What the heck is going on here? I just love weird stories about weird people. ^^
When should you watch the movie? On a cold and rainy afternoon, when you have nothing else to do, if you want something fun and sweet without a lot of drama, if you like that slice of life stuff, if you like weird people like I do :D
I enjoyed it, but the film can drag on a little, so I'd probably not rewatch it.
So there's only one thing left to say: LINDA LINDA! LINDA LINDA LINDAAAA ~
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This review may contain spoilers
Still singing Linda Linda Linda out loud
Linda Lind LINDA is definitely one of those Japanese movies that are tucked into someone’s old cassette hidden in an old shoebox and on random Sundays it takes you on a journey.Overall, the movie is simple but really enjoyable. My only negative remark about this movie is that since the accident starts just 3 days before the cultural festival, the amount of things that happen feels way too much to wrap up in 3 days. I wish they had about 2 weeks; it would have consolidated their thoughts and feelings and made an impactful friendship.
Overall, the movie starts in a very odd way; we don’t see the main event that led to the band falling apart, but the movie starts after the problem has already happened, so you’re kind of thrown in the middle trying to understand what is happening. Also, in the first 40 minutes of the movie, the dialogues were so little that there was so much silence, and I wish they had more dialogues. For someone who never watched Japanese movies, this movie would be very confusing because I think you need to have a bit of understanding of Japanese school culture through movies or anime to understand it, as the movie does not have many dialogues giving context.
However, I did like the way the character of the Son represented us, the audience, asking and wondering things as we don’t get much explanation for why the band broke up or some of the backstoryabout the girls, so maybe this was also the point, leaving that air of confusion that being a high schooler brings.
The best part of the movie is definitely the music. Although they were in a band that fell apart, the bandmates had to reorganize and even learn a new instrument, and with a singer who can’t really speak much Japanese, it takes us through a journey of learning music and appreciating it. The music is definitely one of the best parts, and as the movie ends, the performance really was so much excitement.
It is a good movie about making friendships and music, but I just wish it had a bit more context and more dialogue. I certainly enjoyed watching it a lot, but again, I do think a wider audience will fnd it diffiuclt to grasp but Japan cinema lovers will appreciate this.
P.s. you will be stuck with Linda Linda Linda in your head for weeks,
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I loved it!!
I have wanted to watch this for a while now, and omg I really loved it. This was such a feelgood film without it being a typical in your face 'feelgood film' you know? It was more subtle in that I would find myself being silently smiley and happy after certain scenes. This film made me happy :)I personally really enjoyed the little scenes that didn't necessarily 'contribute to the plot', they are what made the girls seem so real. There was the smallest ever storyline that I was confused and kinda 'umm what' about but I can let it slide lol. And I also adored the scenes where they were practicing in the band room, I rewatched them multiple times just to experience them again. The way it was shot felt so natural and almost quiet and like I was actually there, watching them interact in real time.
The acting I loved. It felt like they were actual schoolgirls, they felt so real. Son is so endearing and I love her. I love how each of the girls had their own personalities but like they weren't overdone so much that they didn't feel like real life people. It didn't feel like a movie in that sense, like it didn't feel manufactured. I loved that about it.
The music was so great. When Son sang it felt freeing and youthful. I felt so proud of her. Honestly devastated the original songs by The Blue Hearts aren't on Spotify though :(
I would probably watch this again, but it was a pain trying to watch because loads of the sites that had it were super buffery, super low quality or had subtitles missing so it look me like twice the time to watch because I had to keep switching between sites HHHHHH but if I could watch it again completely free of disruption, I feel like I would love it even more. It's a quiet happy place :))
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