As Long as We Both Shall Live

Read the books! Movie does not capture enough of story

First, I really really loved the manga and the light novels!!! I was so excited to hear that a live action movie was being released. I watched the anime series on Netflix, which was well done and followed the manga closely.

Hmmm... however, this movie was okay and touched on the highlights of the story. In my opinion, it doesn't cover much of the detail in the manga, let alone the light novels. You really needed prior knowledge from the books to connect some of the scenes.

If you've read the books, then you may find this movie a bit lacking in the character and plot development, since it doesn't go too much into the back story. If you've never read the books, then you'll find this movie entertaining and emotionally moving enough to enjoy.

The casting was okay....I realize that since this was a live action movie and not a drama series, there's only so much time you have to tell the story. So you don't really get too much sense of the acting abilities of everyone. I would've loved to have seen more screen time for everyone to really shine in their roles.

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Watch will be worth....

I just loved this movie....!
It had such a gentle but powerful impact. The way Kiyoka cared for Miyo, not just as a husband but as someone who truly saw her pain and wanted to protect her, was so beautiful and rare. It wasn’t over-the-top dramatic but something about the soft pacing and emotional depth just stays with you. I think that’s what makes My Happy Marriage so unforgettable ,it’s quiet, but it hits deep.

It's a marriage of obligation slowly transforms into something far more beautiful a journey of healing mutuals understanding, and rediscovery of self-worth. Miyo’s character is heartbreaking yet incredibly relatable,, shy, kind and emotionally scarred, but never truly broken.

Kiyoka on the other hand, surprises viewers with his quiet tenderness. Beneath his icy exterior is a man who is not only capable of love but deeply loyal and protective. Their relationship is gentle and slow-burning, making every moment of connection deeply satisfying.

I’ve already watched it 5 times too and I never got bored, not even for a second. Every time I rewatch it, I notice new little details in their expressions and interactions that make me love them more. It’s the kind of love story that feels healing. I seriously wish there were more movies like this ones that show love as gentle, respectful, and slowly growing instead of rushed or toxic.

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interesting premise undercut by misogynistic narrative

I have not interacted with any of the source material, so this is purely based on the film as its own artistic work.

This movie was cute and had some fun ideas, but ultimately felt very hollow. I wish women weren't accessories in the film, and the characters had some sort of nuance. Miyo has no discernable traits and is a clear self-insert for the audience. This movie is a poster child for the Madonna-Whore complex, where women are either virginal, naive, and moral or selfish, vapid, and evil. Miyo's entire characterization is based on things that happen to her instead of any sort of internal journey. At the beginning of the film, she has no confidence and is willing to give all of herself to the point of self-harm. At the end of the film, she is slightly more confident (not because of any intrinsic motivation, but because a man loves her) and is still willing to give all of herself to the point of self-harm.

Kiyoka says that looks and gifts don't mean anything to him, but the audience will never know if that is true because Miyo is both beautiful and gifted. I wonder what would happen if, once she healed from her abuse, she began to act more morally grey. Would he still love her if he couldn't project perfect morality onto her? I have no clue why Kiyoka loves Miyo. Not because she doesn't deserve to be loved, but because we, as the audience, know nothing about who she is or her values.

Miyo is by far the most interesting character in the film, yet her character is not explored at all. All we know about her is that her mother died, as we are reminded every five minutes with a "We Bought A Zoo" - level flashback to her perfect, beautiful mother who is entirely moral and could never do wrong. Does she seriously hold 0 resentments for her family? Does Miyo seriously not care about how her partner treats her? Their love story is cute, but seeing as she is deeply traumatized, the fact that Kiyoka keeps their dynamic so ambiguous feels almost cruel. In addition, the fact that Kiyoka is the one who is interested in her gifts instead of her felt ridiculous. Why was she not asking questions about her past? Why did she get 0 say in where she would be living? Kiyoka gets manipulated by her cousin, but also this 100% would not have happened had he just asked her what she wanted and communicated effectively. Kiyoka has 0 incentive to be toxic towards her after she has made it abundantly clear she has no power and no ulterior motives.

What's really sad is the plot of this film can not happen without the subjugation of women. I was somewhat alarmed at the lack of female soldiers and villains (other than the stepmom and sister, who are otherwise useless to the main plot). However, I realized there could never be large amounts of women fighting with men because that would mean that women were treated as equals with any sense of autonomy. Given that the catalyst for this story is Miyo being sold off to marry a stranger, it is clear that women are pressed in this universe. The narrative never says that this is wrong. In fact, Kiyoka is a hero for caring for her even though she has no autonomy in his household. He hurls abuse towards innocent women who are sent to marry him, likely with similar levels of autonomy to Miyo, but it's treated as some quirk of his. I don't think we ever find out why he is so awful to those women. Kiyoka controls how Miyo is introduced to her gifts, and even after realising something is wrong, he doesn't bother to tell her he thinks she has powers. The whole movie is filled with Kiyoka actively participating in patriarchal behaviours, and he is treated as a hero for it.

Overall, the premise is kind of interesting, but the film shoots itself in the foot for bad character writing, particularly regarding its female characters. I wish Miyo drove the plot, instead of being used as a plot device to move Kiyoka. She's literally the main character.

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Another Live Action Version That Doesn't Live Up To Expectations

I've read the light novels and seen the anime and they are both quite entertaining. This live action iteration, however, isn't. I have so many beefs with this that I can't begin to explain how disappointed I am. First off, the movie doesn't dwell too much on explaining how this world works, the many prominent clans, and their powers. It just gives you a brief narration about it in the beginning and then that's it. The characters seem to exhibit tattoos whenever they use their powers, which I found distracting and unnecessary. For a fantasy story such as this one, I found these specific choices severely disappointing. If you're not too familiar with this world and story, there might be some things that you'll find confusing and inadequate. Not to mention that it packs so much stuff in just barely 2 hours, making the pacing of the film far too fast for the uninitiated.

Second, the casting, as a whole, is pretty solid. Imada Mio as Saimori Miyo is a good fit. The rest of the cast did what they could with what they were given. Although I wish they had given some of these characters more fleshing out. Koji was reduced to practically just the neighbor who helps Miyo. His love and devotion towards her non-existent. Yuuki did what he could with what little screentime he was given. However, I think the casting for Kudo Kiyoka is off. First of all, he is NOT what I had imagined for Kudo based on the manga and anime's descriptions. He is supposed to be a beautiful man, almost too pretty to be a man, and Ren is not that. Sure, he's attractive, but not the kind of drop dead gorgeous as the anime and manga suggest.

I found Watanabe Keisuke who plays Arata more appealing and engaging. But that's just me. Meguro Ren is simply not my type. I'm sure he is a fine young actor and has displayed some fairly good acting skills in his other works, but in this movie, I find him very much lacking. Kudo may be stoic at times but he shows very obvious facial expressions even in the anime. Ren sticks to portraying the typical tsundere character and rarely shows emotions, even the way he speaks makes him look so uptight and constipated. And I found it weird that he's the only one who wears a silver wig when everyone else has their natural dark hair. They could've gone with his natural hair color, he would've looked better and less jarring in a long dark wig. They could've chosen Okada Masaki instead and his age gap with Mio would've been better considering Kudo is almost ten years older than Miyo. Plus, he's a more seasoned actor who could've better pulled off the nuances in the emotions that Kudo displays imho.

Third, the movie is marketed as a romance and yet I don't see a clear romantic chemistry between the leads. I may be biased as I've never been fond of Ren's casting for Kudo and there's the fact that I am not into romantic stories so maybe the cynic in me just can't see it. Last, the production value of the movie is superb, from the set designs to the costumes. It boasts eye-catching cinematography and dramatic camera angles. The production is definitely the best part of this movie. The costumes, sets, cinematography, and camera work are excellent. But the writing and plot, not so much. Whoever decided to change the subplot about the grotesqueries and the last battle was most likely thinking about the budget constraints. They probably spent too much on the costumes and sets that they ran out of money for the special effects. Instead, they wrote about insects found in the burial grounds infecting humans and turning them into zombies. WTF?! But I suppose they didn't have enough budget to recreate the grotesqueries so they just opted for humans possessed by grotesqueries??? Whatever. I think it cheapens the story.

And another change that I found incredulous was turning Miyo into some kind of Mary Sue who could do anything and save everyone. She doesn't have that kind of power. She might have the potential for it but definitely not powerful enough to pull off that kind of feat with her present abilities. Her powers lie in dreams, she can enter the dreamworld, influence other people's minds and even see glimpses of the past, present, and future. But the powers she exhibits in this movie are too ridiculous to even comprehend. Then there's Arata's powers that aren't fully explained in the movie either. The anime does it well by having him duel Kiyoka and defeating him by creating illusions. In the movie, it's just one expository scene after another. Show don't tell. But I guess the writers don't care for showing things but would rather tell. It saves time and budget, after all. I am so disappointed with how they handled the “gifts” and the grotesqueries. They didn't even get the love story right as I barely see any kind of “romantic” moments with the leads. I can see why this was a hit in Japan, the production alone is appealing and it features two of their promising young stars. But it's vastly inferior to its anime and manga counterparts. I'd probably watch the sequel too just to see if it has improved, but I'm not hopeful.

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From Anime to Live

I really enjoyed watching the anime series when I finally pressed play to watch it (I saved it on my playlist since it appeared on stream, but never took the time to look at it until now)… and was pleasantly delighted when I found out there was a live version of it, but as a movie instead!! I love the choice of actors for the main characters pairing of Miyo and Kiyoka, and enjoyed it just as much as the anime. Miyo’s half-sister Kaya was pretty hilarious too. Too bad she didn’t have the light colored hair like she did in the anime, it seemed to match her personality haha. Both the anime show and the live movie get ten stars across the board.

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Must-watch that turned me into a romance-fantasy groupie

Hold on to your enchanted hats because "As Long as We Both Shall Live" is the ride of a lifetime, blending romance and magic in a way you didn't know you craved!

Let's talk about the movie's fancy production – it's so top-notch that even my neighbor's cat would be nodding in approval. They turned heritage sites into a Pinterest dream board, and the costumes are giving off elegance with a side of tradition – basically, a fashionista's paradise.

Ren Meguro as Kiyoka Kudo is the eye-candy you never knew you needed. Grey wig, long hair, and a navy military uniform – he's like the James Bond of fantasy romance, minus the martinis and with a heart of gold. And Mia Imada as Miyo? She's the wide-eyed charm we all wish we had, making us believe in love and magic, even if our love life is more like a sitcom.

Now, let's talk magic – Kiyoka slinging fire like he's headlining a magic show. No abracadabra here; it's embers dancing like they're at a rave. The fight scenes are like a Hogwarts duel but cranked up to eleven – sabres flashing, cloaks swirling, and magic doing its thing.

And the music? It's the DJ at a mythical rave, dropping the beat for intense fights and serenading us with slow jams for those heart-melting moments. It turns every scene into a dance party, and who can resist a dance-off with a sprinkle of magic?

But here's the twist – the showdown with the villainous family is pure soap opera drama on steroids, and I'm living for it!

"As Long as We Both Shall Live" isn't just a movie; it's a rollercoaster of emotions, doused in fairy dust, and served with an extra helping of sass. If I could give it more than 10/10, I'd toss in a unicorn and a disco ball. This film turned me into a romance-fantasy groupie, and I'm counting the days until the next chapter of this epic saga. Let the love flow, the magic sparkle, and the sass reign supreme! 🌈✨🍿

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My favorite movie the overflowing chemistry of the mainleads make me watch everyday

Saimori Miyo was the unfortunate child of a loveless, arranged marriage. After her mother died, her father brought in his lover and her own daughter, Kaya. From then on, Miyo's life was reduced to that of a mere servant. Even worse, while Kaya inherited the family's psychic abilities, Miyo had none—she was truly the daughter with no merit. After years of being treated like dirt, Miyo has learned to keep her head down, hide her pain, and obey every order. So, it comes as no surprise that she is arranged to be married to Kudo Kiyoka, a military captain rumored to be so cruel that he has driven away every one of his potential wives so far. From a painful upbringing to a painful marriage, that's the future that awaits Miyo—or so she thinks. Contrary to her expectations, her new husband is actually kind-hearted. What really awaits Miyo is a blissful, everlasting marriage full of happiness!

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That's the best Japanese content I've ever watched

I honestly love this movie. I've rewatched it soooo many times I can't count it.

1. The story is straightforward with a small number of important people. By that I mean, no irrelevant people slow down the plot. The main antagonists make you understand the worth of the female lead.
2. The romance is light but so heartwarming. There are no kiss but you can feel the romance blossoming from beginning to end.
3. I usually don't like Japanese content because of the overly "Kawai" or some weird stuff that could make foreigners (by that I mean those who are not used to Japanese culture) uncomfortable. But in this movie, there weren't any, like the abuse was reduced to necessary without making it overly uncomfortable. [I don't want to offend anyone, but JP content is really special]. There's not too much overacting.
4. Did I say I've watched a thousand times?
5. The story keeps so captivated from beginning to end. Tho there are a few questions left unanswered no matter how many times I watch it.

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Great watch, definitely recommend!

I LOVED this movie. The plot in itself was interesting but I never really enjoy Asian movies, atleast the ones I've watched thus far, because they never really do it for me. This one though-OMG, was just-chef's kiss. And the main leads relationship was so cute, as a die hard fan of romance no skinship in a drama is usually a deal breaker for me but here it wasn't needed. Their relationship/connection/chemistry was so pure that just watching them together was enough. I wanted to rate this a 10/10 but I ended up giving it a 9.5 because I really wish they showed us more of Miyo's power. I would have also liked to see how her family was after all that happened and not just the word of mouth they gave us, and also the main villain, what happened to that guy? This would have been perfect as a series because there's so much to unpack. Or can they just make a part 2 of this movie? Sigh. I'm just gonna go read the Manga, because how do I move on from this? Watch it, if you're into fantasy, and you won't regret it.

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