The chemistry is very strong, the value of the drama brought upon is very strong and the acting is very realistic and believe. It will make you mesmerized in the character and the story. Even tough the plot is very heartbreaking but it carried itself with light hearted and have funny moments too.
One beautiful piece. Among my top favorite.
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A real masterpiece...
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Therefore, he gave the role a certain spunk and coolness that not many male actors could possibly do, even today. He gave hairdressing glamour and style! Of course, the ending was a teeny weeny bit far-fetched...but it was probably something that finished off the story and gave it the fantasy ending that made the drama the success it was at the time. Watch it!
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An amazing story about life and love.
Kimura Takuya was great as Shuji, and all the characters were adorable.
First couple of episodes were a bit ridiculous and I was constantly annoyed by Kyoko pushing Shuji away and ignoring him. However, the last 5 or so episodes were lovely. I loved the relationship between Kyoko and Shuji and how he cared for her so much.
The scene in which Shuji does her makeup in the last episode was a bit over the top, I must say, but him finally breaking down and crying was definitely needed.
I loved the ending, it was absolutely perfect!
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Unpopular opinion
Probably in the minority, but while a enjoyed a lot of aspects in the drama, romance isn’t one of them. I felt very uncomfortable with it so I don’t know if it’s an issue with me or the way the characters were. Basically while Kyoko and Shuji were decent people, I felt they were wrong for each other.Kyoko managed to lead the best life she could as a person with disability, and the drama is great at showcasing how little details can have a huge effect on people’s lives. The problem is she makes her disability the most central part of her while getting upset when others centralize that aspect for her, leading her to completely disregard others’ feelings. Shuji on the other hand is an impatient and judgemental person. There’s no second chances with him, and while that part of him gets developed a bit throughout the drama, he never actually opens up to anyone, not even Kyoko. Their combination is a recipe for disaster in my opinion. I’ve seen both actors in many dramas and both are great at building chemistry so I don’t know why that didn’t reach me in this drama.
I love the dynamic in Kyoko’s family, it’s perfect. Her brother Masao is cute and caring but he does overstep at one point. I was glad his parents stood up to him when around. He does it out of care but is immature.
It felt good watching something from the 2000s, the music was particularly great (my generation’s music:D) but the writing felt lacking overall.
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A Handful of Missed Opportunities
Beautiful Life (2000) was an emotionally charged drama that struck a familiar chord reminiscent of other ones like it for its textbook depiction of love, loss, and resilience, but it wasn’t without its flaws. At its heart, the story was anchored by the chemistry between Takuya Kimura’s charming yet understated portrayal of Shuji and Takako Tokiwa’s luminous performance as Kyoko, a woman whose physical limitations were treated with admirable sensitivity for its time. The drama’s beauty lay in its quiet moments, Kyoko's defiant joy, Shuji's evolving tenderness, and the unspoken melancholy of ordinary life brushed with rising pain. However, its emotional power often bordered on manipulation, with tear-jerking sequences and swelling musical cues that risked reducing a nuanced relationship to a mere tragedy. Fortunately, this was only most applicable to the last 3 episodes. Additionally, while the drama broke ground by portraying a disabled FL in a leading role, it sometimes leaned into idealized tropes, framing Kyoko’s struggles more as narrative devices to drive Shuji’s growth rather than delving deeper into her agency and identity despite being a leading character. The pacing, too, occasionally faltered, with melodramatic stretches that risked to undercut the rawness of its central theme. In a different world, I would love to see them continue exploring the relationship without the terminal illness element since it was somewhat cut short to accommodate for the writer's predetermined plan. On another note, a few things were planted but neglected and ended up being underutilized. For example, it was foreshadowed multiple times how Shuji was the son of a famous hospital director/CEO and coming from a family of doctors but that didn't play a role later on, nor the anticipated involvement of his family which remained anonymous. Many things were either missing or unfinished at the cost of fleshing out the story and its characters just to reach the highly emotional familiar moments. For all of its shortcomings, Beautiful Life captured something universally human: the poignancy of love in the face of fate. It was imperfectly told and profound, a drama which, even as one wished it had dared to be bolder, lingered on in the heart, at least for a little while.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
How can a series be so Painfully Beautiful? That's how I describe this series.Takuya Kimura really did a good job in portraying a hairdresser.
(Trivia: He actually studied Hairdressing for this drama and is a licensed hairdresser)
Yes, I have a love-hate relationship with the Female protagonist for the fact that she's so pessimist, it's to a fault. Yes, I understand she's a person with disability, due to her illness, but she seemed to think that everyone is doing something good for her because of that. Isn't that a bit too much? Can't anybody be just nice, sweet or even fall in love with you, because you are you and not because you have a life threatening illness?
Be ready to weep in the last two episodes. I actually did not expect that cause it was feel good the first few episodes. It was really painfully beautiful. It broke my heart, really.
Original review can be found here: https://elijahmaliksmom.wordpress.com/2016/11/30/beautiful-life-jdorama/
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This review may contain spoilers
Some thoughts while watching the last episode...
"It's strange. The fear's receding.""Receding?"
"Like waves receding."
—Kyoko to Shuji in episode 11
I'm obsessed with how when Shuji finds out Kyko is dying he basically makes a decision never to cry, and how his decision because he knows and feels that there's nothing he can do for her (i.e. he can't save her life), even as everything he then goes on to do is for her and her happiness in her last days of living; the one thing he feels he can do is "be strong" for her—and as messed up as that sounds it's actually something Kyoko appreciates because she feels (and even tells him) she can say anything to him—he can take her fear and her sadness and not run away from them, or from her. But she's also told him that she can hear his heart crying. And so it's like she appreciates the effort he's making to do the only thing he feels he can do for her and for his love for her.
You know how in Eriko Kitagawa's Long Vacation (1996, while this drama is from 2000) it's like this sustained moment of arrested development for Sena and Hayama—this period in their lives of waiting and hoping and nothing going the way they want, and so they act like it's a vacation from life until things start working out again? There's some of that going on here, in how Kyoko and Shuji go and hide out from her being sick: they live together and try to lead regular lives as if her death isn't impending. But in actuality, they're running away/not dealing head on with the situation right in front of them is like in fact how they intentionally decide to deal with it. What Kyoko says about fear receding like a wave, it's like when you're surfing and when you're under water and a wave comes at you—you're not supposed to fight it, but just go under it... The idea that when life gets difficult the thing to do is not to fight against it, but to go through it, to sustain the injury and go through it.
These "pause" moments in life is something Kitagawa returns to again and again, I think, bcause it's the same moment she explores in Orange Days (2004), right at the end of college when Kai's no longer a student and he's on the brink of having to become like a contributing member of society and he has to decide what that will look like for him. Kitagawa's interested in those liminal spaces. In Beautiful life it's the time before a death you know is coming, in Long Vacation it's the time after some success that was supposed to lead to brighter things but didn't, and in Orange Days it's the time before having to become a working adult.
*I wrote these thoughts down before finishing the episode, when we then see Shuji open the salon he and Kyoko dreamed of running together, and he goes surfing, and the show ends with a shot of him facing the waves. It's so cool how Kitagawa laid it all out so well, without being overt about it.
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Japanese classic!
Another head blower. Massive holding back tear alert! Beautiful story that took me in more and more with each episode. It took me few days after to pull myself out. In order to understand the quality and sweetness of japanese classic drama’s you must watch this one.If you get into the Japanese classic mode watch this one , Long Vacation, Nobuta wo Produce and One Litre of Tears. You will be set after that
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One of the few dramas I have re-watched and still enjoyed even more each time.
I am typically not a fan of love stories, and I cannot really relate to the experiences of the characters. All I can say is watching this drama makes me believe in the beauty of love and devotion to a partner. I love the chemistry between the two lead characters and towards the ending of the story, you will be emotionally and mentally impacted by the beauty of the plot. I did not want to say too much about this drama other than it is a must watch and it made me a fan of Kimura Takuya, who I have watched basically everything he has ever performed. For me this is totally a masterpiece for the role that he plays. Just thinking of the story right now brings tears to my eyes. It is so beautiful.Was this review helpful to you?
Love, disability and finding joy even in hardship
Netflix has been dropping a lot of classic Japanese dramas lately, several of which starring Takuya Kimura. So I figured it was as good a time as any to start diving into them.I'm admittedly late to the party with Beautiful Life. I started watching dramas in my late 20s - missing a lot of dramas that came out before then.
I didn't know what I was getting into before starting this drama. I wasn't prepared to feel all these emotions. But wow, I am so glad I watched this!
Takuya Kimura and Takako Tokiwa put on memorable performances as the leads in this emotionally charged 2000 drama. Takako Tokiwa (Kyoko Machida) captured the pain, frustration and hopes of a disabled 27 year old who has all but given up on life until she met Takuya Kimura’s character, Shuji Okishima. Shuji is a quiet and fiercely loyal person. He's also good at times and has shown a deep care and acceptance of the female lead. Together, these two shined in every scene they were in.
I'm really glad I watched this as an adult. I don't think some of the themes like living with a disability and finding joy even when times are hard would've hit me hard in my teens as they did now. There's so much to unpack and with my limited experience when I was younger, I probably would've focused only on the sadness of it all and not the little nuggets of joy and wisdom.
With all that said: no matter when you decide to watch Beautiful Life, no matter what age or what you're going through in life, this masterpiece of a drama is worth a watch.
Note: if you're sensitive to themes like terminal illnesses or the despair that comes with living with a disability (trust me, I know), you might want to take a moment and consider if Beautiful Life is worth the watch. It may be a hard watch for you but it still is worth it in my opinion.
There's a lot more I can say about Beautiful Life but it's difficult to fully process what I just watched. So instead I'll leave you with my version of the quote from Shuji:
I will never forget this beautiful drama.
“I clicked the shutter in my heart. As if burning it into my eyes. As if burning it into my mind. As if burning it into my heart. As if burning it into the rest of my life.”
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